Steps Along the Wall
by Miqila
Summary: One shot collection of what could have been, may have been and what could've never become reality.
1. Chapter 1

**A.N: Hello! This is a collection of SnK one shots featuring various characters and some pairings. Will have some spoilers, but I'll try to warn about those in the author's notes before each story. Also, note that I've published some of these in tumblr already, so if you feel like you've read them before, it's not because I stole them.**

**This first one stars Reiner, Sasha and certain other characters. Spoilers are up to chapter 105, so anime only people, be aware!**

**You'll Regret This**

BANG!

Reiner frowned, studying the target board. He'd hit it, thank god he was no longer bad enough to miss, but the bullet went nowhere near the center. Damn.

BANG!

Seeing the target board next to his own get hit right in the center, he expected to see Bertolt next to him. But no, it was Potato girl.

"_Sasha, remember that her name is Sasha. She doesn't take it well when people call her Potato girl" _he reminded himself.

"Nice shot" he said, making her look up "Thank you."

Then, she looked at his board, quirking an eyebrow as she did so.

"You on the other hand still need some practice"

Reiner snorted. As much as he wanted to take offense, there was no way he could when it was completely true and came from someone so much better than him.

"Yeah, I do" he admitted "But at least I didn't completely miss the target."

Sasha snorted, also knowing that some other cadets had done just that.

"Yeah, you didn't" Sasha agreed "And you're either average or above in pretty much everything, so it's not like the instructor will maim you when he notices."

The "but he'd kick my ass" that Sasha left unsaid was clear to Reiner. The girl was on instructor Shadis' bad side, he knew.

"I still don't like the idea of not getting a hang of this" he said "I aim for the military police where guns are actually used from time to time after all."

Sasha looked thoughtful for a while before saying: "I could teach you."

Reiner's eyebrows shot up in surprise. He had considered the girl to be the selfish kind and besides-

"Aren't you also aiming for the top ten? Is it okay to help someone you're competing with?"

"You do that all the time too, don't you?" Reiner couldn't deny that "Besides, even if I help you out, this is the one thing the great Reiner Braun won't be able to beat me in."

The smile on Sasha's face after that was smug, and not without a reason. Still, Reiner kind of wanted to wipe it off her face.

"I'll accept your offer, then" he said with a grin of his own "And one day you'll regret teaching me."

Smirking, Sasha said: "I'll look forward to that."

XXXXX

BANG!

The bullet hit the target, but not the center of it. Gabi was not happy, Reiner could tell.

"Chill, it wasn't that bad of a shot" Zofia said, not taking her eyes off of her own target as she hit it right in the center "Everyone's lacking at something."

Gabi glared at her, about to say something, but didn't as she noticed Reiner behind her.

"Reiner!" she cheered "Can you teach me?"

"Sure" Reiner said. He was better at shooting than he used to be and Gabi didn't seem to have a natural talent for it like Zofia, so he was sure he could be of some use. It was time for him to help others the way he'd once been helped.

XXXXX

Reiner had seen a lot of death in his rather young life, he'd _caused _a lot of death, so it was no wonder he barely felt anything as he stood in front of the grave. The grave of a someone he'd once called a friend, killed by his cousin.

"_This was for the best; she was a dangerous enemy with those shooting skills…" _a memory came to his mind from years ago, the smug smile in front of him like it had been just yesterday.

"Hey Sasha" he says to the silence as a single tear slides down his cheek "I told you I'd make you regret teaching me, didn't I?"


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N: This one takes place between chapters 112 and 113, so the spoilers are up to around then.**

**Forgive Me**

"Yelena is waiting for you" Floch told Onyankopon and, while the man's attention was on him, he could see Hanji looking at them from the corner of his eye. He could see that she was handcuffed while he was not. And she could clearly see it, too "You'll be going to see her, right?"

As confusing as the situation was, there was one thing Onyankopon knew for sure: he had to pick a side and he had to do it _now_.

"Yes, I will" was his reply. After all, it was better to join the stronger side. Besides, he also wanted to know what Yelena was doing; he hadn't heard anything about imprisoning the survey corps' elite soldiers. He'd have to learn more before he did any final decisions. He hoped that Hanji understood that but, seeing the betrayed look on her face, he doubted that that wouldn't be the case. Even so, he had no choice but to move forward to see where this would go.

"_Forgive me, my friend"_ he thought, turning away from the woman _"I have no other choice."_


	3. Chapter 3

**A.N: I wrote this some time after chapter 114 (or was it 115?), so spoilers are up to around that time. Read at your own risk!**

**It's Not Your Time Yet**

Levi saw the light and, instinctively, started to walk towards it. Seeing the shapes of people as the light grew brighter, he started to walk a little faster. Those forms looked familiar, so familiar…

"_Ah, of course" _he thought as the forms became clearer. Isabel and Farlan. They were waiting for him, probably had been doing so for years. He'd missed them, he'd missed them so much. And not just them; behind the two were Petra, Oruo, Eld and Gunther. As great as his current squad was, it couldn't take away his longing for the four of them. Not that he wanted it to; he wanted to protect the memory of those who had fallen.

They were saying something, all of them. Isabel seemed to be screaming even, yet he couldn't make out the words. But he would soon; all he had to do was to get closer. He'd hear them then. Closer, closer, closer-

"Captain, no!" Levi froze, recognizing the voice of a person he had been unable to protect not too long ago. Squinting his eyes, he saw Sasha push through his old squad. Ah yes, even his current one had started to fall apart. He really couldn't protect _anyone_, could he?

"Captain, you can't come here" Sasha said "Eldia still needs you!"

Did it? Hadn't he done enough? Or better yet, what use was he, really? He couldn't protect anyone; everyone around him just kept dying. It'd be for the best if he just joined them.

With that in mind, Levi started to walk again. Now he started to hear a bit more, not just Sasha's loud voice. He could hear the voices of his old squad, welcoming hi-

"Turn back, captain!" Petra yelled, startling him as he stopped in his tracks "It's not your time yet!"

"You have to go back, captain" Gunther said "You mustn't join us yet."

"Well, it's really up to you what you do" said Oruo "In case you don't want to trust us."

"Trust us, captain" Eld said "Turning back is the right choice."

Well, maybe not welcoming him, but they were still happy to see him, he was sure. And it's not like they had to agree on everything; he had the right for rest-

"Levi, you need to go back" Farlan said "Back to freedom."

He could be free here, couldn't he?

"I've had enough of that freedom" Levi said "It's time to- "

"Time to do what?" Levi turned around to face the new voice. Erwin, with Mike by his side and, one by one, their other dead comrades started forming behind the two "To set everyone free? People have yet to achieve freedom, no?"

"People can achieve it on their own" Levi said. He was starting to get tired "I've done my share of work and more."

"You'll leave her alone?" Levi looked between Mike and Erwin in confusion. Moblit "You'll leave Hanji to handle everything on her own?"

Those words hit Levi like a bullet.

Hanji.

That's right, Hanji was still alive out there, dealing with the whole mess to the best of her ability. As capable as the woman was, the situation was hard for her to handle alone.

"Well?" Erwin asked, an all-knowing smirk on his face "What will it be?"

Levi looked at them, all of his comrades one by one. Unlike some might think, he remembered them all, all of their faces, all of their names. He hadn't forgotten a single one. He missed them, he had apologies to make, but even so…

"I have to go back" he said.

"Damn right you do!" Isabel cheered "There are still tons of things for you to do!"

"And delicious food for you to eat!" Sasha added "So take your time; no need to hurry back!"

He wouldn't. At least, he would try not to. He still had a lot to do. But-

"I'll see you all again when the time is right" he said "Clean this place up while waiting, why don't you."

"…" that sure silenced them. Well, whatever.

With one last look over his shoulder, Levi walked back towards the dark tunnel he'd come from. It was time to find Hanji and go monkey hunting.


	4. Chapter 4

**A.N: Spoilers up to chapter 115.**

**Our Guiding Light**

Kaya sat on the floor of the cell, looking down with eyes unseeing. She just didn't know what to do anymore, everything was far too much out of her control.

"_What would sis do?" _she wondered, knowing she'd never get an answer. Sasha was dead _"Sis can't help me anymore."_

"You sure look down" Kaya looked up "Pun not intended."

She couldn't help it; her mouth quirked upwards just a little bit. She remembered this man, Connie was his name, Sasha had brought him over often. He'd been her best friend "What's eating you?"

"You ask that like getting thrown in a cell by rebels is an every day thing" she said, asking: "Is it?"

"Nah" Connie said, sitting down next to her "Usually we _are _the rebels. And usually we don't mess up enough to get caught."

Kaya actually snorted at that. She'd heard stories from Sasha, including ones from the time they overthrew the government. To Kaya, her sister was a hero, but Sasha had always denied this, insisting that she had only been following the captain's orders and deserved no credit. Kaya had to wonder about that, though.

"Tell me" she said before she could stop herself "Was my sister… a good soldier?"

Connie looked at her in surprise, not sure of what to answer to that. He was quiet for quite a while before saying: "A good soldier and a good comrade aren't always the same thing."

Sighing, he started to explain: "A good soldier follows the orders and rules, a good soldier is serious, putting duty first. Sasha wasn't exactly any of those things, but… she was a good, no, _great_ comrade. I was always anxious while in battle, always afraid, but with her by my side, I always knew I was never alone. She'd be there for me, no matter how bad things turned out. And it wasn't just on battlefield… she was a great friend. We were always fooling around together, always having fun, yet when I lost my family, that goofy girl was the one to support me, the one who was there for me. She… kept me on the right track."

Kaya just listened quietly, agreeing that that did sound like her sister. Chickling, Connie asked: "Does that even make sense?"

"I think it does" Kaya says honestly, drawing her knees closer to herself "I feel somewhat same… sis was rarely home because she had so much work to do, but when she was, I felt more at ease than anywhere else. She was always so kind, always helping everyone… I wanted to be like her."

"Past tense huh?" Connie asked "Because of what happened at the restaurant?"

Kaya gave no answer, which was an answer on itself.

"You can still become like her, you know" he said, head lowering "Well, not exactly like her; no one else can be so kind and pure, but you _can_ become someone she could be proud of" clenching his fists, he finished: "I want to be someone like that, too."

Kaya looks at Connie, seeing his pained expression.

"You blame that girl for killing Sasha, and it's not like you're wrong. She pulled the trigger, there's no denying that, but… it doesn't make her a bad person. She's simply an enemy, no more no less."

Kaya frowns, not understanding the difference. If someone was an enemy then they were a bad person, right?

"What's the difference?" Connie thinks of it for a while before replying: "A bad person is someone who hurts others for the sake of hurting them, even if they pose no real threat. An enemy is someone who stands in your way for one reason or the other. I think that just like Sasha and me, that girl is nothing but a normal person, a soldier who wanted to defend her home from an enemy invasion, thinking she was doing the right thing. Just like Sasha and I did when we killed MPs four years ago in the coup."

"…" Kaya didn't know what to say. She didn't like the idea of Sasha being compared to Mia, but if she tried to think of it rationally, she couldn't come up with an argument. Mia was a soldier just like her sister, but on the other side. And that was why her sister was dead.

"I kind of feel like I'm stuck in the dark" Connie suddenly started again "Ever since I lost Sasha, it's like I lost the light in my life, like there's no longer a clear direction. But even so…" he let out a sigh "I don't plan on giving up. Sasha wouldn't want that."

"…Yeah, she wouldn't" Kaya admitted "She'd want you, want us both, to find our way out on our own. We can't keep on relying on her forever."

"Exactly" Connie said "I'll try my best to live a long life, but once it's my time to join her again, I want to be able to say that I did my best and I want her to be proud of me."

"…Me too" Kaya confessed. She might not be able to be exactly like Sasha. Just like Connie said, she could never be so kind and selfless, but she could make her sister proud. And she would.

"_And perhaps someday, it'll be my turn to guide someone the way she guided me."_


	5. Chapter 5

**A.N: This one I wrote in April so… around chapter 116? Spoilers are only up to about chapter 110, though.**

**Together**

"Fuck fuck fuck _fuck_!" Hitch curses as she spaces back and forth in front of Annie's crystal. She wasn't all that sure of what was happening, but she knew that Eren was making a mess of things outside. Her superiors had sent her to the basement to guard Annie, which was her main job, sure that Eren would send someone after the female titan sooner or later. If that was true, then it'd be only a matter of time until Hitch's life would be in danger for real. Should she just run? Abandon everything and save herself? With the huge mess the whole country was in, no one would put much effort in to finding one run away soldier, right?

"_It'd be the smart thing to do" _Hitch knows, but recently, in these kinds of situations, a certain face that is now long gone pops up to the top of her mind _"Marlowe would never approve of something like that."_

But he'd been foolishly brave and Hitch wasn't. There was a difference between putting your life on the line when you were convinced you might be able to make a difference, and putting your life on the line despite being doomed to fail.

"_Yet there was someone who put her _very_ limited life in the line despite having no idea of what she was getting in to" _Hitch thought, stopping in front of Annie's crystal as she looked at the sleeping girl _"Fuck it… why did I end up in a squad of brave fools…"_

Well, save for Boris of course. He could probably be called a fool too, but a very different kind of fool. But Hitch didn't exactly want to be like him either, so…

"Fuck this shit!" she yelled, sitting down in front of Annie "They want my crystal girl? They gotta get past me first!"

She would not run. It was foolish not to do so, but a soldier had her duty. Military Police were known for their cowardice when things really counted, and while she definitely knew why, she'd sworn after losing Marlowe that she wouldn't become like them. She'd fill her duty like a proper soldier.

Despite having made a decision, it doesn't keep her from going pale as she hears the door creak open. Jumping to her feet, she aims her pistol towards the door, trying to ignore the fact that her aim has never been the best possible.

"_Calm down girl, you graduated in the top ten and helped to take down the government… and you were roommates with a fucking _titan _that you're now babysitting. You can handle whoever comes through that door- "_

"Darn it Hitch, I know your aim is shit but put that down!" Boris curses as he steps in, closing the door behind him "You might actually be able to hit me by pure luck!"

Hitch blinks "Boris?"

"Yeah, so put that down" the man says, massaging his temple "Geez, I shouldn't have volunteered for this…"

Hitch lowers her gun, so Boris walks down the stairs. She speaks again only after he reaches her "What are you doing here?"

"The big shots said that having more people to guard the female titan would be for the best" he said "I volunteered, as did a few others. They are guarding the door and the hallways."

Hitch supposed that made sense. Until something happened, this job was easy, so getting volunteers shouldn't be that hard, at least not from the younger groups. However, veterans understood Annie's importance and how dangerous guarding her at a time like this _could _get. And so did Boris.

"I'm surprised you agreed to do something like this" she tells him bluntly "What's in it for you?"

"Are you saying you won't believe me if I say that I'm just fulfilling my duty?" Boris asks, but Hitch just raises an eyebrow, unimpressed "Alright, I suppose that was a stupid thing to say. You know me better than that."

"Yeah, I do" Hitch confirms "Now spill."

"With the way things are going, I don't think there's safe place left on the whole fucking island" Boris blurts out, making Hitch wince. She knows he's right "It's highly likely we all die, but if we don't, those who didn't abandon their positions are sure to climb ranks. It's either run and possibly live, but live in fear, or stay and fight, most likely dying but having a chance at winning and getting a good life."

"And you're risking everything for that good life?" Hitch asks, but Boris just shrugs "If the military collapses, I'll have a miserable life ahead of me even if I survive. No thanks, I'd rather take a gamble for good life. Besides…"

Boris trails off after that, not continuing. Hitch, however, isn't satisfied "Besides?"

"…We were both once part of Marlowe's squad. We can't tarnish his name, can we?" this didn't sound like Boris. Normally, if he said something like that, Hitch would write it off as him being sarcastic, but he looks and sounds sincere. He _is _sincere, Hitch realizes.

"Yeah, we can't" she confirms, a smirk raising to her face as she points at Annie "And there's another squad mate we can't just go and abandon, either."

"Eh, I don't really care about her" Boris says with a shrug "She stabbed us in the back first after all."

Hitch could get angry, but she doesn't, and there're two reasons for it. First is the fact that she knows Boris to be right, but the second is that she also knows him to be lying. Boris cares, she knows. As much of a mixed bunch as they were from the beginning, this squad that got shredded to pieces long time ago is still _their_ squad. And that's a fact a they don't want to change, either of them.

"_Hey Annie… hurry up and join us again already."_

**A.N: Yes Annie, hurry up and join us. Isayama, we've placed our order!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A.N: Spoilers up to chapter 112. Also this has hints of a ship, so it might not be for everyone.**

**Locked Up**

"Sasha, slow down! Nikolo's going to be fine!" Connie yelled as he and Grior struggled to keep up with the frantic woman walking ahead of them.

"We don't know that for sure!" Sasha argued without stopping or looking back "The MPs don't like Marleyans; they might even hurt him just for laughs!"

"She has a point; they dothat sometimes" Grior said, quickening his space a little. Connie cast him a glare, saying: "You're not helping!"

Even so, he too picked up the pace. He was worried about Nikolo, but even more so he was afraid of what Sasha might do if it turned out that Nikolo had actually been hurt. He didn't want her getting in to trouble.

"_What a mess…"_

"_How did I get myself in to a mess like this?" _Nikolo wondered as he sat in a cell, rubbing his aching wrist. It was stupid, really. Just why had he tried to go back in to the restaurant through the window after forgetting the key? He should've just waited for Grior! It was a given that someone trying to get in to a building late at night through the window would be mistaken for a thief. Of course, he had explained himself to the local MPs that were alerted over. He had thought everything'd be fine, for those MPs actually ate at the restaurant from time to time and knew his face. But no, that's not how things went. In fact, he felt like they wanted to make things hard _because _they knew who he was and didn't like him.

"_Well, I suppose I can't blame them. If our roles were switched, I'd probably be doing something similar" _still, he didn't like this. Grior must've noticed by now that he was gone; perhaps he had contacted the MPs and was working to get him out? Or was Grior thinking that he'd decided to try and run and didn't want to mess his chances? In that case, he could be stuck here for a _long _time.

"That hurts, you jerk!" Nikolo jumped, recognizing the voice. Sasha was here… wait, she was hurt!? Standing up, he rushed over to the door in order to hear better, but before he could press himself against it, it opened and Sasha stumbled inside, being pushed by one of the MPs.

"Sasha?!" he cried out, instinctively catching the stumbling woman in his arms, wincing a little from the pain caused by the sudden movement.

"Ow" Sasha whined, managing to cast one final glare at the MPs over her shoulder before the door was shut once more "I really don't like those guys…"

Nikolo had to agree with her, but that wasn't important right now.

"Why are you here?" he asked "Why did they just lock _you _up?"

Sasha blinks before grinning sheepishly "Well, I kind of messed up…"

"Oh really? Wouldn't have guessed" Nikolo says, eyebrow twitching. Letting go off her, he crosses his arms, trying to mask away the slight worry he feels for her "What happened?"

"When Connie and I got in to the restaurant, only Grior was there and he said he hadn't seen you since yesterday. So, we asked around, and one of the neighbors told us someone had been taken away by the MPs after trying to break in. Grior had found your key, so we figured it must've been you and came here" she said "We were supposed to just take you back with us, but the MPs got bitchy so I… well… I might have punched one or two of them…"

Nikolo just stared and Sasha looked away, seeming a little embarrassed. He wasn't all that surprised about Sasha lashing out at the MPs, but that she'd do that for _him_, that was a shocker.

"You… went that far… for me?" he asks slowly, both fearing and hoping he'd misunderstood something. If he'd misunderstood, then that'd mean Sasha cared about him less than he now thought she did, but if he got it right it meant that she was now stuck here because of him. He didn't like either option.

"Well yeah, I was afraid they'd hurt you" Sasha admitted, and Nikolo thought he was able to see a small blush on her face "Since, you know, they don't like Marleyans…"

"Right…" they stand there awkwardly, neither really knowing what to say, before Nikolo catches Sasha's eyes going up and down his form. Blushing a little, he asks: "What are you doing?"

"Just checking if you're hurt" she answers "Are you?"

"…No" he lies after a while, realizing that he probably shouldn't have lied as Sasha frowns at him "You're not being honest with me."

"…Yeah" he admits as the woman doesn't back down "But it's not serious; nothing's broken. My wrist just hurts a little."

"Show me" Sasha demands, grapping his wrist. With how much power she does it, he's glad that it's the wrong one "It's the left" he says, pulling away before Sasha can yank at it "It's fine, really."

Sasha narrows her eyes at him, and Nikolo finds himself to be weak against that look. Damn. Hesitantly, he lowers his left hand, letting her take a look. He's prepared for it to hurt, but to his surprise Sasha takes his hand gently, perhaps having realized her earlier mistake. She observes it, pressing down carefully, and Nikolo hisses before he can stop himself.

"Sorry" she apologizes "It doesn't look like it'd be broken, but you should be careful for a while."

"I know" Nikolo says, pulling his hand back as Sasha lets go "…What do we do now?"

"We'll just leave everything to Connie; he'll figure something out" Sasha says with a shrug, smiling. Nikolo however, isn't all that reassured: "Leave it to _Connie_? Really?"

"…Well, Grior's there too" Sasha says with a sweat drop, getting the hint "They'll come up with something."

Nikolo just stares, and the last of Sasha's smile falls off her face.

"…We're so in trouble"

"Yeah, we are" Nikolo agrees. He just hopes that Connie will realize to go get someone smarter than him to their aid, otherwise they might be locked up for who knows how long.

"Ah well, it can't be helped" Sasha says, walking over to the single hard bench in the cell before sitting down. Looking over at Nikolo, she pats the seat next to her "Come over here!"

"…Why?" Nikolo asks hesitantly. Sasha shrugs once more, saying: "Since we're both stuck here without nothing else to do, we should make use of this rare opportunity. It's not often that we actually have time to talk to each other properly!"

Well, she's not wrong, Nikolo knows that, but to just have a casual chat in a cell like this…

"_Screw it" _he thinks, accepting Sasha's invitation. And they talk. About food, about their friends, about the outside world, anything. Neither really knows when it happened, but at some point, both of them drifted off to sleep.

"Should we wake them up?" Connie asks as he stares at the sleeping duo with Jean and Grior.

"Yeah, better do that before the MPs change their minds" Jean says, watching how Sasha leans against Nikolo's shoulder, who in turn is asleep against the wall, his head tilted in Sasha's direction "Though I do wish I had one of those camera -things right now."

"No kidding" Connie says with a snort "I'll never let them live this down."

Tired of their chattering and wanting to get out of the place, Grior ends up being the first to walk up to the sleeping duo. He pulls Nikolo up by the collar of his shirt, startling the man awake in the process. It also awakens Sasha as the woman can no longer lean on Nikolo and slams down on the bench rather hard.

"Ow…"

"What?" Nikolo asks groggily, taking a while before he can understand his surroundings. When he meets Grior's blank stare, he scowls "What are you doing?"

"More like what are _you _doing?" he hisses back, gesturing towards Sasha who's now nursing her head as Connie helps her up. Confused, Nikolo stares at Sasha. They were talking about the dishes he'd eaten once when he visited Asia and then… what, exactly? He couldn't remember… did they fall asleep? Next to each other? That would explain some things… "Nothing of importance."

Grior keeps staring at him blankly as Nikolo frees himself, straightening out his shirt. He catches the sight of Jean at the cell's door, and when the man meets his gaze he smirks and asks: "Had a nice nap?"

Nikolo can feel his face growing red, and the widening of Jean's smirk only makes him surer that he must be blushing like a mad man. Naturally, he sees it better not to say anything.

"I know I did before the rude awakening" Sasha says, casting a glare at Grior, who just glares right back. Frowning, she asks: "Can we just ditch Grior here?"

The man is startled before looking at her with narrowed eyes, causing Sasha to stick her tongue out at him. It would serve him right.

"Maybe next time" Jean says, wanting to defuse the fight before it can properly start "For now, let's get out before the MPs change their minds."

"So, we're free to go?" Sasha asks and when Jean nods, she cheers: "I knew I could count on you!"

"What about me?" Connie asks, but she ignores him. As they all walk out, Sasha catches Nikolo's eyes and smiles. He's a little startled, but smiles back anyway. As much as he has always hated sitting in a cell, this time it hadn't been all that bad.


	7. Chapter 7

**WARNING! Spoilers are up to chapter 121, which is the most recent chapter!**

**He Knew**

"I guess I'll see you soon again?" Nikolo asks hopefully as he walks Sasha out of the restaurant late that night, looking at the woman fondly.

"Of course," Sasha says with a smile. They stare at each other silently, but soon Sasha starts leaning in closer, and Nikolo follows her example. Their faces are only a few centimeters apart-

"Sasha"

And then they both jump as they hear the voice, rapidly getting some distance from each other, the woman going as far as taking a few steps back. Spinning around she spots Eren behind her "Ready to go?"

"Yeah yeah, of course!" Sasha answers, casting a nervous look at Nikolo, who is simply giving a hostile look, almost a glare, to Eren. The titan however is not faced "Let's go!"

The Eldians walk away, but not before Sasha shoots the Marleyan at the door an apologetic look.

"See you Nikolo"

"Yeah" the prisoner of war answers "See you."

Sasha and Eren walk in silence for a few minutes, but then Eren says: "You're falling for that Marleyan, aren't you?"

"What!?" Sasha's reaction is instant "No, I'm not! Wha- what makes you say that?"

Eren just turns his head to look at her and raises an unimpressed eyebrow, noting how red the woman's face is. They stare at each other, Sasha's face getting redder and redder under Eren's unfaltering gaze. Finally, she looks away and mumbles: "Well, maybe a little…"

When Eren doesn't say anything anymore, Sasha looks at him again, asking: "Is that a problem?"

Eren shrugs.

"Even if I said it was, you wouldn't stop, would you?" he asks. Sasha nods without hesitation. She knows Eren is overly cautious about all the Marleyans and she understood his point, but she wouldn't let that get between her and Nikolo. Eren sighs "Well, that might actually even be for the best…"

"Huh?" now Sasha was confused.

"If you fall in love and get married, you might be tempted to stop being a soldier" Eren clarified, eyes directed ahead again "With these dangerous times we're living, that'd definitely be for the best for you."

Sasha blushed furiously. Just what the heck was Eren saying, bringing something like _that_ up all of a sudden!?

"You're getting way ahead of things!" she says "Besides, even if I got married to someone, I wouldn't stop being a soldier. Not as long as there's a war going on and I'm needed!"

Eren stops out of the blue, grasping Sasha's arm. His grip is unexpectedly tight, and Sasha winces.

"Eren?" she asks. There's something in his eyes that she can't quite place, but whatever it is, it feels like a bad thing "What is it?"

"You shouldn't say that" Eren says. His tone is quiet, yet easy to hear, and there's something off about it "You _should _quit."

"What?"

"Quit being a soldier" Eren clarifies, his grip tightening "We can handle things without you; you don't need to put yourself in danger anymore."

"Eren- "

"Quit being a soldier. Go home, stay with your family, start your own some day if you want to. Just _stay away _from the battlefield!" Eren says, and now Sasha can see the lines on his face clearly, the ones he usually has after a titan transformation. Something was wrong "Eren, I think you need to get some rest- "

"You'll die!" Eren shouted, making Sasha yelp as his grip tightened again "If you go to the frontlines, you'll die!"

"Stop it!" she yelled out, slapping Eren's face with whatever strength she could muster in this surprising situation "Eren, you're scaring me!"

Eren blinked, and Sasha was pretty sure it was the first time he did that after starting to act strangely. Looking down at his hand, he quickly let go of Sasha's arm, moving his hand to his head "Shit…"

Sasha rubbed the sore spot, watching Eren uncertainly.

"Eren?"

"I'm fine" Eren said with a heavy sigh. At that moment he looked so tired, so _old _"Just a little out of it."

"Yeah, I noticed" Sasha said, trying to sound like it was a joke, but the problem was that it wasn't. It really wasn't "I think you need some sleep."

"Yeah…" Eren agreed "Let's go back to the barracks."

They did, and they never talked about the incident again.

Their attack on Marley would begin in a few hours, and Sasha was nervous, Eren's words from back then ringing in her ears. She went back to war, back to frontlines. Would Eren be pissed when he saw?

"_You'll die!"_

Sasha shook her head, forcing the memory down. She wasn't going to die; she'd make it like she always did. She survived the deadly surprise attack from the Warrior unit in Shiganshina four years ago; how could she die in a surprise attack that was going to be their own doing? That would be stupid.

She was going to make it.

"This girl shot Sasha… I don't think there's any hope for her…"

Jean's words stung Eren despite the fact that he'd known they were coming. He'd tried to change it, tried to get her to stay back, but she didn't. She didn't and this was the result.

"Sasha's dead"

Dead. Gone forever.

He asks about her last words, dreading the answer. If his memories are correct-

"She said "meat.""

And his memories _are _correct. It was so laughably ironic; he knew everything, yet he could stop nothing. The Founder, The Attacker and now even The Warhammer, yet he was unable to save a single friend. Truly laughable.

But faith could not be changed, so the only option was to go forward.

Because if you don't fight, you can't win.


	8. Chapter 8

**A.N: Major spoilers up to chapter 106, slight ones up to 112.**

**Love**

Nikolo knew he should be more mindful of his surroundings, that Grior could walk in at any given moment, but that fact was stashed to the back of his mind as he pushed Sasha against the kitchen wall, passionately kissing her. It was wrong, he knew, for she was an Eldian and he a Marleyan, but at that moment, and many other moments before it, he just couldn't bring himself to care. He had no idea where it had come from, but wasn't there a saying "all is fair in love and war?" Well, there was definitely a war going on and he was in love, so it was all good.

…

Love. Yes, he couldn't deny it anymore; he had fallen in love with this Eldian woman. And he couldn't help but wonder if she felt the same way.

Deciding that for once he wouldn't beat around the push, Nikolo pulled away and asked: "Sasha?"

"Yeah?" the girl asked, slightly more out of breath than Nikolo.

"Do you love me?" he could see the blush spreading on Sasha's face, but then she grinned, throwing her arms around his neck "Yeah."

Nikolo could feel himself blushing as well. In order to hide it from Sasha, he pulled her in to a kiss once more. When they broke away, Nikolo asked: "How much do you love me?"

"Almost as much as I love cookies!" Sasha cheered, making Nikolo stare, unblinking. Sweat dropping, Sasha asks sheepishly: "That was the wrong answer, wasn't it?"

Nikolo stared at her for a little more before bursting in to laughter.

"No" he said, kissing Sasha's forehead "Things like these are exactly what I love about you."

And he never wanted her to change.

**A.N: I suppose this can be called fluff? I've always been bad at writing that, but this came out okay.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A.N: NikoSasha again, an AU this time!**

**Bullet in the Night**

"Sasha for god's sake, get your hands off of the cookies!" Nikolo yelled as he saw his wife reach out for the treats he had baked and set aside to cool down less than a minute ago "Those are for Kaya's school sale!"

"Oh come on, I'll only take one!" Sasha argued. Pulling her wife away from the table, Nikolo said: "It never stops at just one with you, so no."

"But- "

"No, Sasha" Nikolo said firmly, making his wife pout. She was so cute when she did that, but Nikolo had learned how to resist it years ago-

…

Damn it.

"…I'll make some for you tomorrow; they'll be ready once you wake up."

Starry eyed, Sasha asks: "Promise?"

"Yeah, I promise" Nikolo says with a sigh "Now get going; Jean's gonna be angry if you're late from work."

"Yeah, I'll go" Sasha said, kissing Nikolo's cheek "Love ya."

"Love you too, but- "he grasped Sasha's hand right before it could touch a cookie "Nice try."

"You're no fun" Sasha said with a laugh, the sound like music to his ears. Shaking his head with a smile, he watched as his law protecting wife went off to her night shift, turning around and blowing a kiss at him at the doorway. Nikolo caught it, watching his smiling wife shut the door. Fortunately, he'd have a day off tomorrow; he could bake the promised cookies while Sasha slept, tired from her shift. Speaking of which, he wondered which flavor he should choose for the cookies…

XXXXX

Nikolo jolted awake as his phone rang. Looking at the clock, he saw it being barely 3 A.M. It wasn't Sasha calling about forgetting her keys, then. Sleepily and slightly annoyed, he answered: "Hello?"

"Nikolo, it's me" thanks to Jean's urgent voice, Nikolo was now wide awake "Sasha's hurt; you need to come to the local hospital right now!"

Nikolo was out of the bed before Jean could even finish. This wasn't the first time Sasha had gotten hurt in the line of duty, but for Jean to cut it so short, for him to sound so frantic… it had to be bad, really bad.

"I'm on my way" he said, hanging up. There was no point in asking for the details; it'd just slow him down. He'd know when he got there.

XXXXX

Arriving at the hospital, Nikolo rushed towards where Sasha was told to be as soon as he got the information. He knew he was in the right place as he saw one of Sasha's colleagues, Floch he thought she'd called him, standing next to a door, looking grim. Noticing him, the redhead nodded in greeting, pointing at the door. Nikolo nodded back hastily, seeing Sasha's closest friends, her two colleagues Jean and Connie, next to a bed. And on the bed was his wife.

"Sasha!" he yelled, paying no mind to the two men as he ran to his wife's side. It was only when he took the woman's hand that he noticed she was not hooked up to any machines, no needles in her arms "Hey…"

"We're so sorry, Nikolo" Jean said, putting a hand on his shoulder "The help came too late."

Nikolo could register the words, but not the meaning.

"What?" he asked, not taking his eyes off of his wife's body "What do you mean? You got her to the hospital…"

"But it was too late" Jean said, squeezing the other man's shoulder "She passed away just a little after the surgery started."

"Wha…?" passed away? But his wife was right here! Laying his other hand on Sasha's shoulder, Nikolo shook her "Hey Sasha, wake up, okay?"

No answer, no reaction.

"Sasha… you wanted to eat those cookies, right? You can have them, you can have them all, so just- "

"She's dead, Nikolo" Connie spoke for the first time "She's gone."

No. No, she couldn't be, not his wife. He couldn't lose her; there was still so much to do, so much life to live. They hadn't even gotten to their first wedding anniversary yet! Sasha couldn't die before it!

"No… no no no god damn it, NO!"

XXXXX

Nikolo woke up with a jolt, sitting up in his bed. Breathing hard, he looked around before finally understanding his surroundings. He was home, at his bedroom. He hadn't been to the hospital; it all had been a dream, a nightmare.

"Sasha?" he asked, but to his horror, his wife wasn't lying next to him. He was about to go in to panic, but soon remembered that the part about Sasha going for a night shift _hadn't _been a dream. She'd really gone, and was probably still there. And she'd be fine, it had just been a stupid nightmare that-

Nikolo's heart dropped as he heard his phone ring. With a shaking hand, he reached for it to see the caller id. Jean, Jean was calling him. Why would he call him, unless-?

"Oh god no" he mutters, answering the phone as he jumps out of the bed "Jean? What happened, is Sasha okay!? I'll come right over- "

"_Honey calm down, it's me. I'm okay" _he hears Sasha laugh at the other end of the line _"I'm just using Jean's phone 'cause mine… well, I kinda forgot it at home. With my keys, so can you come open the door?"_

Nikolo just stands there, having a hard time processing what he was hearing. It was definitely Sasha's voice; she was on the phone and she was okay. She was _okay_ and just calling 'cause she forgot the keys. This was ridiculous, _he _was ridiculous for getting all worked up like that.

"_Nikolo? Are you still there?" _Sasha asks _"Can you come open the door?"_

He can't help himself, his relief getting out in one go as he bursts in to laughing.

"_It's not that funny!" _Sasha huffs from the other end of the phone _"Just come open the damn door or I'm shooting the lock!"_

"Don't; you'll get in trouble" Nikolo says as he finally gets himself under control "I'll come right over."

He ends the call, rushing to the door. He _knows_ she's fine, but the dream is still so fresh in his memory that he _needs_ to see her, needs to make sure.

Passing the window, he sees Jean's car on the street, probably waiting until Sasha gets inside. Opening the door, he sees his wife with a sheepish look on her face.

"Hey" she says "Sorry if I woke you- "

He doesn't really think about it, he just goes forward and pulls her in to his embrace, holding her as close as he can. She's there, and she's alright. Everything's okay.

"Nikolo?" she asks out loud, wrapping her own arms around him a little hesitantly "What's wrong, honey?"

"Nothing" he says, holding her a little tighter "Nothing at all, not now that you're here."

"…You aren't usually this sappy" Sasha says after a while, pulling away a little so that she can see his face "Did you have a nightmare or something?"

Nikolo doesn't answer, but he can feel the heat raising to his cheeks as he refuses to meet Sasha's gaze.

"You did!" she confirms with a small laugh, but it dies down as the meaning of his actions sinks in. Her face softening, she hugs him before saying: "You know I'm not going anywhere, right?"

"…Yeah, I know" he says "Sorry."

"It's okay" she says as she pulls away again, but doesn't let go "We should head inside before someone sees us."

"Why? The neighbors see us hugging all the time anyway because you're so clingy" he can't help but tease her, a small smirk on his face. Sasha blushes, huffing: "Yeah well, usually when they do see us hugging, you're actually wearing pants!"

Nikolo blinks before looking down. Oh yeah, he'd been in a hurry, which led him to walking here in his sleepwear: t-shirt and boxers. And it just happened to be those teddy bear boxers Sasha had gotten for him as a joke for Christmas.

"…Yeah, let's head inside" he says, knowing that he's blushing. This time he ignores his wife's laughter, for he knows he had it coming.

They both head for the bedroom, Sasha to sleep and him to get some clothes on. After he's dressed, Nikolo notices that his wife is already sound asleep. She can't fake those snores. Smiling, he goes over to place the blanket properly over his sleeping wife, taking a moment just to appreciate the sight.

"_Back to Earth Nikolo" _he tells himself as he stretches _"You have cookies to make."_

**A.N: In tumblr this is with the name Bullet in the Night version 2, for in the first version Sasha's death wasn't a dream and I only came up with this ending after publishing it, so I wrote another version. Just saying in case someone thinks this sounds oddly familiar but they remembered Sasha dying instead of surviving.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A.N: Spoilers up to chapter 112. Also, this is a humor one shot, the kind of humor that is not for everyone. You have been warned.**

**Surprise in the Kitchen**

Grior sighed as he stomped back towards the kitchen. The customers had fortunately all left by now, but there was still a lot of cleaning to do. But he refused to do it all alone, so where the hell was Nikolo? He couldn't find the guy anywhere!

"_He better not be wasting time with that girl again" _Grior thought _"He's getting too attached, especially considering the fact that she's an Eldian."_

Grior lets out a sigh as he comes to the kitchen door, about to open it when he hears noises from the inside.

"_So, he was in the kitchen all along" _Grior wonders and almost pushes the door handle down, but stops himself as he realizes that the voices from inside are too frequent and loud. Nikolo wasn't alone _"Did Yelena come over? Or is it that girl again?"_

As far as Grior knew, Yelena was under tight watch so it was unlikely she'd show up at night. Maybe it was just the girl.

"Hm?" Grior pressed his ear against the door, thinking he'd just heard something rather questionable. Was it just his imagination? Concentrating, he furrowed his brow. There it was again; now he was sure of it. He was hearing moaning from the kitchen.

"_Nikolo, for God's sake" _he thought as he backed away from the door in disgust. Being a little friendly with the Eldians he could overlook, but this? This was going too far. Besides, what would Nikolo do if the other soldiers found out and accused him of forcing himself on the girl? If it looked like the girl would get in trouble, Grior highly doubted she'd back the other man up. Nikolo wasn't thinking at all, was he?

"What're you doing?" Grior almost jumped because of the voice, having not heard her co- wait. Turning his head, Grior saw Sasha standing there in front of him, looking at him curiously with her head tilted to the side. But if she was there, then who the hell was in the kitchen with Nikolo? Or was Nikolo there at all in the first place, could it be some other people?

"I thought you were in there with Nikolo" he confessed as a whisper, pointing at the door "But since you're here, who's he with?"

Sasha blinked before she went over to the door, pressing her ear against it the way she'd seen Grior doing it when she arrived. Not long after she backed away, giving Grior a disturbed look.

"You thought _I _was in there with _Nikolo_?" she hissed, fortunately remembering to keep her voice down.

"With how much time you spend here with him can you really blame me?" Grior asked, crossing his arms.

"I come here for food!" Sasha hissed, rolling her eyes "I mean for Nikolo too, he's a great guy, but I'm not even in to guys in such a way!"

"…" Grior had to admit that was not something he had expected to hear. And apparently it was not something Sasha had expected herself to tell him either as she soon covered her mouth, looking at him with wide eyes "Don't tell anyone I told you that!"

"Your secret is safe with me" mostly because it wouldn't benefit him in any way, but also because he was sure Sasha would find a way to get back at him if he told her secret to someone.

They stood there for a while, a little awkwardly he supposed, before a wicked grin game to Sasha's face. He raised a cautious eyebrow, wondering what the devil's spawn had in mind.

"Wanna find out who it is?" she asked, jerking her head towards the door. Grior thought about it; part of him really didn't, it's not like it was even any of his business, but then again, he and Nikolo were stuck in this mess together; it'd be better for him to know what the guy was up to.

"How do we do it without them noticing?"

"Who says we have to do it that way?" Sasha asks, the grin not leaving her face "Just follow my lead."

The girl is at the door before Grior can stop her. Swinging the door open with a bang, Sasha greets: "Good evening Nikolo and- huh- wah- Jean!?"

Grior came in too, and he too saw the squad leader, he was pretty sure that's what the man's rank was, in the room with Nikolo and in a rather… awkward position.

"…Don't you two know how to knock!?" Nikolo was the first to recover from the awkward surprise. Grior felt like banging his head on a table, not the one where Nikolo and the Eldian soldier were banging each other on mind you, because he was so done with getting pulled in to other people's shit. Well, at least Nikolo didn't need to fear getting blamed about taking advantage of someone; the Eldian was way too strong for anyone to believe that, that Grior knew.

"Don't you two know that this stuff is usually not done in the kitchen?" Grior asked back in a calm, steady voice. Thank god for his military trained poker face "On second thought, don't answer that. Just clean this place thoroughly once you're done; I don't want to find any unpleasant surprises when I work."

He turned to leave, not waiting for the pair's response, but he caught a sight of Sasha still standing there, mouth hanging open as she stared at the two. A moment of unintended kindness coming to him, Grior dragged the girl out of the door with him before slamming it shut.

**A.N: Did you think it was going to be another NikoSasha one? Sorry to disappoint you, but you gotta admit that NikoJean works too. :D**


	11. Chapter 11

**Facing His Fears**

Despite being a soldier, there were many things in this world that Nikolo was afraid of. Of course, it was natural; fear and other emotions were unavoidable, soldier or not. He feared the titans he was taught about in school since he was a child, he feared the devils of Paradis that were said to be the worst of the worst, he feared pain and death in general. Most people would, after all, but this wasn't all.

He also feared dogs.

It was irrational, he knew, especially since he was fine with literally every other animal, except perhaps wolves. He just couldn't shake off a trauma from his childhood when the neighbor's huge dog had charged at him.

So obviously, seeing the creature that had somehow gotten to his kitchen terrified him to no end.

"Hi Nikolo!" he heard Sasha greet, only then noticing that the girl was in the room as well "Fuzzy and I have been waiting for you!"

It took him a while to register that "Fuzzy" must've been the dog's name. It had to be Sasha's, then, or at least she was the one who brought it over _"Why the hell would she do that!?"_

"Why did you bring that thing here?" Nikolo asks, and when Sasha looks at him in confusion, he hastily comes up with an excuse: "It's unhygienic to bring such an animal to the kitchen!"

"It's fine; I scrubbed him up before we came here" before Nikolo could protest, she added: "_And _I'm here to make sure he doesn't cause trouble. Don't worry!"

So much for his excuses. Well, if Sasha kept an eye on it and it didn't get to him all would be fine, right? There was no reason for him to worry…

"Fine, but you better keep it away from me" he relented "And I don't want _you_ causing any trouble either, are we clear?"

"Do I have to promise that?"

Nikolo only gave her a glare as a reply, causing Sasha to smile sheepishly "Okay, I try not to bother you."

That was the best he'd get, Nikolo knew. Well, he better start working.

…

Well, he tried to, but it was hard to concentrate with that creature in the room. It was rather big, too. Could Sasha even control it if it decided to start trouble? Sure, she was a soldier and so stronger than what he'd expect from an average woman, but was she strong enough? He really didn't want to find out with experience…

"_Should I just pretend that I ran out of some ingredient and convince her to leave to get some?" _he wondered. That could work, but it'd have to be something easily available on the market to seem believable. Curse Paradis and it's still present lack of food resources!

"Hey Sasha" he said, getting her immediate attention "It seems I've run out of eggs. Can you go get some? I need them for this dish."

"Sure!" Sasha says, jumping up immediately "I get to try it once you're done, right?"

"Of course," Nikolo says without hesitation. Anything to get rid of the dog and besides, Sasha would've done what she could to sneak a bite even if he said no "Just hurry; I don't want this to go bad."

"I'm on my way!" Sasha said, and Nikolo heard the door close soon after. He let out a sigh of relief; he'd never been this glad to be rid of her before.

"Woof!"

Woof?

Dread filling him, Nikolo slowly turned around, only to see the dog still next to the table where he'd last seen it.

"_She didn't take it along?!" _well, logically thinking, he supposed it was to be expected that Sasha wouldn't take the dog with her to the market. Now he just wishes he would've realized this sooner _"But it's okay; it's just sitting there. If I leave now, I should get out of the door before it comes after me… it'll be fine…"_

Nikolo started inching towards the door, but as soon as he did so, the dog got up and started to lazily walk in to his direction. Gulping, Nikolo tried to be as fast as he could, but later he supposed that it just provoked the beast as it jumped at him, licking his face. He knew it wasn't the case, but part of him couldn't help but feel that it was trying to eat him.

"Get off! Get off!" he screamed in panic but, with the dog not obeying, he did his best to push it away before scrawling away from it. However, now the dog was between him and the door "Shit…"

Thinking fast, Nikolo climbed on to the table Sasha'd been sitting at, hoping that the dog wouldn't follow. It could easily get on the table by jumping, but he prayed that Sasha had trained it better than that and that it was more well mannered in the kitchen than it's owner "Sit, Fuzzy! Stay!"

To his relief the dog did sit, but it kept staring at him, making Nikolo feel like if he moved, it would too. He was stuck.

"_Damn it"_

When Sasha came back from her errand, she was greeted by the peculiar sight.

"What are you doing Nikolo?" she asked, staring at the cook who was still on the table, absent mindedly patting Fuzzy's head as it walked up to her.

"…Nothing. Nothing, really" Nikolo said, red faced as he got off the table "Did you get the eggs?"

"Yeah!" Sasha cheered, going to put them down, but frowning as she saw that there already were some eggs right on the counter "…Nikolo, why are there eggs here? Plenty of them; weren't these enough?"

Nikolo cursed, remembering he'd already taken all the ingredients out. He should've hidden them!

"Well, that's…" he didn't want Sasha to know the embarrassing truth. Just what should he tell her?

Turning to him with the frown still on her face, Sasha asks: "Were you trying to get rid of me?"

"What?" Nikolo asks, registering how hurt Sasha looks, even though she seems to try to hide it "No! I was trying to get rid of _that_!"

He points at Fuzzy, who just tilts its head, looking as happy as ever. Surprised, Sasha blinks before looking at the dog "Fuzzy? Why? He's so cute!"

"I don't like dogs" he simply says "I wished you would've taken it along when you went out."

"Oh…" Sasha still looked a little hurt, which made Nikolo feel a little guilty. Well, it can't be helped.

Wanting to get back to work, Nikolo was about to take the few steps to the counter, but as soon as he moved the dog bounced on him once more, bringing him down again. Sasha laughed as the cook yelled at the dog to get off "You might not like him, but he certainly likes you!"

"Just get this thing off of me!" Nikolo yelled again, ceasing Sasha's laugh as the girl realized that he didn't sound just angry. He kind of sounded… scared. Realization finally hitting her, Sasha rushed over to command her hairy friend off of the terrified soldier "Fuzzy no! Get off!"

Sasha had to take a hold of the dog to get it to listen, but once she did, it got off on its own. Breathing heavily, Nikolo scrambled away from the two. Staring at him, Sasha said: "Nikolo, you're… afraid of dogs?"

She voiced it like a question, but it wasn't one, not really. It was painfully obvious that it was true.

His face flushing again as he got his breathing under control, Nikolo mumbled without looking at her: "So what?"

He got up, returning to the counter, wanting to finally get to work again.

"Why didn't you just tell me?" Sasha asks, confused as she watches Nikolo's back that has been turned to her "I would've never left you alone with him if I'd known!"

Nikolo stays silent, not saying anything, hoping that she'd just leave so that he'd get rid of the dog. And he kind of wanted to get rid of her too right now; he was too embarrassed to face her. However, a sudden sniff from behind him makes him turn around.

"I'm sorry…" Sasha mumbles, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes "I didn't know…"

Again, Nikolo panics. This was _not _what he had wanted. He wants to go and comfort Sasha, he _would _go and comfort her, but the damn dog is still right next to her. He can't go near it! "Don't cry… it's not…"

Seeing his companion distressed, even Fuzzy whines. Sasha wipes her eyes hastily, saying: "Sorry, it's my fault. We'll leave right away."

"No, Sasha, wait!" Nikolo doesn't want to part ways like this, so he gathers his courage and goes over despite the dog being there, laying a hand on Sasha's shoulder "It's fine, I'm the one who should apologize for snapping."

"But… are you okay?" she asks him, and he answers truthfully: "Well… I'm okay enough. Just make sure it doesn't get that close to me again, okay?"

"We can stay?"

"Yeah, you can" Nikolo confirms, secretly afraid of his own words "Just… keep it under control, okay?"

"Okay!" Sasha cheers, guiding the dog to lay next to the table as she sits down. She wants to ask why he's so afraid of dogs, but decides against it. Maybe some other time, though. Now she's just glad that she and Fuzzy can both enjoy Nikolo's company, even if the cook himself is still nervous. But maybe, just maybe, she'll slowly get him used to her furry friend.


	12. Chapter 12

**Behind the Door**

"Finally done" Jean said, wiping sweat from his forehead as he and Armin finished mopping up the HQ's basement "Shouldn't this be Eren's job?"

"The basement hasn't been his room for years" Armin pointed out "And he's busy, so it can't be helped. Besides, it didn't take all _that _long."

"Whatever you say, Mr. Positive" Jean said with a sigh "Let's get out of here."

Climbing out of the basement, they were about to pass Hanji's room on their way to put the supplies away, but a loud crash from the room stopped them in their tracks.

"…It's Hanji's room; it's probably nothing important" Jean said after a moment of silence "She's always causing trouble."

"Yeah, something probably just toppled over because she was running around" Armin agreed "But maybe we should check that she's okay? She might have gotten hurt."

Before Armin could knock on the door, they could both hear rustling from the room, the sounds soon growing louder.

"She seems to be fine after all" the blond said with a small smile.

"It's the commander after all" Jean said with a smile of his own "Let's go."

Before they could, they heard a voice from inside the room: "Levi, no!"

"Was that Hanji?" Armin asked, his voice not exactly a whisper, but quieter than it was before.

"Sounds like the captain's there too" Jean said just before they heard another crash "Just what on earth are they up to?"

"I'm going to do this no matter if you like it or not!" they could hear Levi yell, making their eyebrows rise.

"No way!" they heard Hanji protest, and for a while they only heard rustling and things falling.

"…Are they fighting? As in, physically?" Jean asked, really uncomfortable. Hanji and Levi argued often, but he'd never seen them lash out at each other physically. If that's what they were doing, should they stop them? Would they get in trouble since the two were their superiors?

"It sounds like it" Armin admitted "But surely they wouldn't do each other too much damage? Maybe Hanji chugged a pillow at Levi or something."

"Or maybe the captain whacked her with a broom" Jean said with a snort "He does that sometimes."

Another crash. A bit worried as they were, they already planned to leave their superiors to themselves. If it took them too long to show up, they'd come back with Mikasa… or maybe Yelena.

"Levi, stop it! Hands off of my shirt!" …or maybe not; that sounded bad.

"What the hell is the captain doing!?" Jean hissed. Had it not been Levi of all people, he would've barged in by now.

"…Maybe we should go get Mikasa" Armin suggested, glancing worriedly at the door.

"Do we really have the time for-?"

"LEVI, NO!"

"To the hell with it, we clearly don't!" Jean screamed before kicking the door open. It was surprisingly easy; it didn't seem to have been locked. And it was no wonder, for the sight before them was not at all what Jean and Armin had been expecting.

Hanji and Levi looked surprised to see them as well, having frozen in place as the door had slammed open. Levi had one hand in a bucket, holding a cloth over a laundry board and the other one against Hanji's forehead, clearly trying to push her away. Hanji on the other hand had a bundle of dirty clothes tugged under her left arm, the right one having a hold on the same cloth as Levi.

Raising an eyebrow, Levi asked: "Can we help you brats somehow?"

"We… err…" Jean stuttered, heat creeping to his face. There was no way he could tell them what he thought had been going on, but Levi was quick to catch on lies. Just how was he going to get out of this!?

"We heard a ruckus and got worried" right, Armin was there too. He'd get out of this by keeping his mouth shut and going along with the guy "We were wondering if there was some experiment gone wrong with all that yelling."

"_Thank god for Armin Arlert" _Jean thought, certain that even Levi would have trouble with catching a lie when it came from the blond.

"I wish that'd be the case!" Hanji moaned dramatically "Levi's stealing my clothes!"

Armin and Jean turned their questioning eyes to Levi, knowing that there was more to it. With an irritated sigh, Levi said: "I'm _washing _these filthy rags you call clothes."

"Without my permission" Hanji pointed out "And they're not filthy, they're perfectly fine!"

"They're filthier than Connie's socks" Levi stated flatly, making Jean wince. He knew how filthy _those _could be. Hanji just laughed "What, you do laundry checks on your squads?"

"_He does" _Jean thought and was about to voice it, but Armin elbowing him in to the ribs stopped him. Right, better to keep his mouth shut.

"That's not the point" Levi said. The two veteran scouts started throwing subtle and not so subtle jabs at each other. Jean and Armin just stared before glancing at each other, coming to a wordless agreement. As one, they disappeared back in to the hallway, making a solid decision to never suspect their captain again.

And to go check their laundry, just in case.


	13. Chapter 13

**A.N: There was a NikoSashaWeek a while ago, which is why some of these are going to have the word "day" and a number in front of the title, but pay it no mind. I don't know yet if I'll publish the whole week in order or if there's going to be something else than NikoSasha between them, but they'll all end up here eventually. Theme of the first day was reincarnation, so we'll start with that!**

**Day 1: Reincarnation**

Sasha was exited. She wouldn't have cared all that much about coming to the city, _but _Jean had promised to take her and Connie to a seafood restaurant. She had never eaten seafood before, but she knew what it was and was eager to try it. She was sure it'd be tasty!

"_I want to eat already; Jean should hurry up!" _she thought with a sigh _"Just how hard is it to pick a necktie, anyway? Men and their shopping obsessions!"_

"I'm telling you, this one's better!" Connie said, holding out a necktie with a picture of a sun on it "Put that boring thing away!"

Jean was holding a dark blue tie in his hand, Sasha saw. She thought that the one Connie picked was funny, but it wasn't really Jean's style. Wanting to get this over with, she voiced her opinion, getting Jean to pick the dark blue tie. Finally.

"Food!" Sasha cheered. Finally, the best part of the day.

XXXXX

Nikolo fought the urge to hum as he cooked; he had been made fun of for that before. He just couldn't help it sometimes; cooking, especially seafood, made him so relaxed that sometimes he started to do it without realizing it.

"Gross" Nikolo glared at the man who had uttered the word on reflex; that was not a word that should be uttered by a _cook _in the _kitchen_. Just what was gross?

"Do you think she has no table manners in general or does she simply not know how to eat a lobster properly?" another one asks. Nikolo can see them staring out in to the dining space of the restaurant, making him realize that they're simply speaking about the eating habits of a customer. That made sense.

Deciding that it had nothing to do with him, Nikolo returns his full attention to his cooking. However, he gets distracted as he notices that all of his colleagues' peek in to the dining hall every now and then, some amused, others disgusted. Curiosity getting the better of him, he abandons his position the moment he's sure nothing will be ruined, wanting to see what everyone else has seen.

Just like some of the others, he's more disgusted than amused at what he sees. The woman in front of him has absolutely no table manners, that's the only explanation he can think of, as he stares at the uncivilized being. Normally, Nikolo didn't like using the word "gross", but now it really fit.

…

So why the hell couldn't he tear his eyes off of the woman? He'd seen what he wanted; he should just go back to work before he lost his appetite for the rest of the week from watching this brute. Cute brute, he would admit, or at least would be cute if she ate in a proper way, but still. She was by no means the first cute customer they'd had, yet she was the only one this had ever happened with.

And then their eyes met.

XXXXX

Sasha felt like she was in heaven; the food looked, smelled and, most importantly, tasted just _heavenly_. It had gone beyond all her expectations!

"_I wonder if whoever cooked this is good at making other types of dishes as well?" _she thought, her eyes trailing off from the food for a while to peek in the kitchen from over the counter, locking eyes with one of the chefs looking her way.

And after she did, she could no longer look away.

She didn't understand why; the guy didn't look special… or did he? Why else would she get stuck like this? It's just that… something about seeing him stirred something inside of her, something she couldn't place. Like a memory she knew for sure was there, but had no idea from when and where.

"_Where? Where have I met him?" _she wondered, her meal entirely forgotten. Had they been classmates as kids or something? …No way; she'd gone to a very small school, she'd remember. Had he perhaps been starring one of the cooking shows she'd watched?

"Sasha?" she heard Connie say as he tugged at her ponytail lightly, getting her attention as she looked away from the man "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing at all!" she said quickly. Not that she was lying; there was nothing _wrong_, just something weird is all "Why?"

"You were staring off to the kitchen instead of eating; that's not like you" Jean said, turning to look to the direction Sasha had been looking at "Did you see something interesting?"

"No" Sasha said, her eyes following Jean's. The man she'd locked eyes with was gone "Nothing at all."

XXXXX

Nikolo's heart was still pounding fast as he prepared to go home. After his eyes had locked with that woman's, he'd been paralyzed, he hadn't been able to move. He had no way to explain it, but somehow, he'd been taken over by this irrational feeling of longing when looking at her eyes. He'd _wanted_ her, but not in the perverted way mind you. He'd just wanted to see her closer, hear her voice, perhaps touch her hand… and he had absolutely no idea _why_.

"_Get a hold of yourself, idiot" _he told himself _"You'll probably never see her again anyway."_

With that in mind, Nikolo walked out of the back door of the restaurant, ready to forget the whole thing-

Only to come face to face with the woman he'd been watching at in the restaurant. He almost got a heart attack as he yelped in surprise, taking a few steps back. Just what was she doing here!?

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you" she spoke. Her voice stirred something in Nikolo as well, something he couldn't name. He hated the fact that he wanted to hear more. Shaking his head slightly, he managed to get out: "It's fine. Can I help you somehow?"

"Ah no, it's just…" Sasha stuttered, wondering how she should say it. She'd wanted to ask him if they'd met before, but now she was chickening out, so instead she said: "You're one of the cooks here, right? I just wanted to say that your food is delicious! Especially the sauce on the clams!"

Nikolo blushed; _he _had made the sauce. He told her that, not intending to brag or anything, but he was glad he did when he saw the awe on her face.

"Really?" she asked "You're a genius!"

"_Mister Nikolo, you're a genius!"_

Those words jolted a memory in Nikolo's mind, but for the life of him, he couldn't remember from when and where. Unable to help himself, he asked: "Have we… met before?"

Sasha's eyes widened; he remembered something?!

"You think so, too?" she asked, adding hurriedly: "I mean, I felt like we've met before, but I couldn't put my finger on it so I thought I was imagining it, but if you know- "

"I don't" Nikolo interrupted, wondering if she'd been waiting here for him specifically. The idea should've been worrying, freaky even, but instead he just felt warm inside "I just felt like we'd met before."

"Oh" Sasha let out. It was quiet, awkward. She didn't know what to say and part of her just wanted to leave, but a bigger part of her didn't. She needed to know more, needed answers. Sticking out her hand, she said: "I'm Sasha."

Nikolo took the offered hand.

"Nikolo" he said, and as soon as their hands touched, a crying face stuffed with food surfaced in his mind. It was Sasha, but Nikolo had no idea when this had happened. Startled, he let go, surprised as he saw Sasha staring at him with wide eyes.

"…What?" he asked.

"We've met before" Sasha whispered "I remember you in a very old looking kitchen, working on pizza…"

She did? It's not like he never made pizza, but he could only recall using modern kitchens-

"_You idiot, it needs to go to the oven first!"_

…What the heck was that? Why did he suddenly have a memory of Sasha, yes, definitely her, reaching out for an unbaked pizza? This was weird, too weird, Nikolo just wanted to go home and forget-

His eyes met Sasha's again. No, he didn't want to forget. Ever. He really had no idea why, but he wanted to be by her side, he wanted to be there forever.

"_Holy shit Nikolo, you just met her!" _he told himself, a blush raising to his face _"The fuck are you thinking of a shared rest of your lives for already?!"_

Or at all; he knew nothing about her. Unknown to him, Sasha had similar thoughts.

She wanted to hug him, hug and never let go. The desire was growing, but obviously she held herself back. Instead, she said: "You know… I'm kinda hungry."

"Huh?" after how much she'd eaten? Really?

"Don't look at me like that; I waited here for hours!" she said, defensive, puffing her cheeks. Again, what she said should've been alarming to Nikolo, make him think he had a stalker, but all he could think of was how cute she looked "So… can we go get something to eat?"

Sasha was afraid he was going to say no, she was pretty sure he would because he'd think it was weird, but she had to try. She had to know _more_.

"Sure" Nikolo said, ignoring the voice in his head that sounded oddly like his friend Grior that told him to refuse. But he couldn't; he wanted to know more, wanted to know _her _"Any place in mind?"

"I'm not from around here" Sasha said, trying to hide her surprise to his agreement "Lead the way?"

Nikolo smiled, taking her hand on reflex, only realizing what he'd done after he was holding her hand. But to his surprise, she didn't pull away. He could see her blushing, making him sure he was blushing as well. This situation just didn't make any sense-

"_Whatever" _Nikolo cut himself off _"Commonsense is often overrated anyway."_

He had no idea who this woman was but, with time, he'd get to know her… but oddly enough, he already felt like he never wanted to let go.


	14. Chapter 14

**A.N: Again with the NikoSashaWeek. The theme was role change, so here we have an Eldian scout! Nikolo and Marleyan soldier! Sasha.**

**Day 2: Role Change**

"Does it have to be me?" Nikolo asked as Jean handed him a tray. Rolling his eyes, the man said: "Yes, it has to be you."

"Why?"

"Because I'm busy, Armin's busy, Eren's an ass, Mikasa's trying to babysit him and Connie, well…"

"Is a moron who'd just get tricked by the prisoner?" Nikolo finished for Jean when he didn't continue. The guy shrugged with a lopsided smile, saying: "You said it, not me. Try to make sure he doesn't find out."

Nikolo sighed; Jean was such an ass. Well, seems like he had no choice. He couldn't ask his superiors to do this, and knowing Floch he might actually try to hurt the prisoner, so he was out too. They were supposed to avoid that after all.

"Fine" he gave in, leaving for the woman's solitary cell. For comfort's sake they kept most of the prisoners together, but that wasn't an option with this woman. They had had no option but to isolate her after she managed to convince majority of the other Marleyan soldiers to a rebellion and almost caused a massive prison break. The MPs had wanted her head, but the Survey Corps had saved her as Yelena convinced them that she'd be useful in the end if they just got her trust.

"_I just hope she doesn't bite anyone to death" _Nikolo snorted, remembering how the prisoner had bitten Jean when they'd caught her. He should probably make sure his hands didn't linger near the bars of the cell too long.

"I brought you some food" he said as he entered the underground chamber where the woman was locked up in. She glares at him before looking away with a move that is almost theatric, like she wants to make sure Nikolo sees exactly how much she hates him. Brat "I'm not hungry."

That would've been a lot more convincing if her stomach hadn't chosen that very moment to start growling.

The woman blushes. Nikolo can see her glancing at him, or perhaps just the tray, before quickly looking away again. He raises an eyebrow, wondering if she'll still try to deny it.

"I'm not eating something made by filthy devils" she says "No matter how hungry I might be!"

"Then it's a good thing I'm not filthy; I bath regularly" Nikolo attempts to joke. In all honesty he just wants to leave and take the tray with him, but he feels slightly sorry for her. It's not like he thought she was a bad person; she'd ended up here simply for trying to do her job and-

To his surprise, he hears a chuckle. The joke had gotten through.

"Not sure if the same can be said about all of you" she says, and Nikolo would be offended if he didn't know how true it was. Everyone in Levi squad took great care of their hygiene, the captain made sure of that, but there were plenty of others who had poor hygiene, to put it nicely.

Raising an eyebrow, he made a point of sniffing the air before saying: "Or about you for that matter."

The reaction is immediate as her head whips to his direction. Face red, she snaps: "I'd bath if I had the chance to!"

"You easily would have" Nikolo says "If you just cooperated."

The woman didn't say anything, just narrowed her eyes before turning away from him. Nikolo sighed, slipping the tray in to the cell from the small hatch at the floor level "Just eat."

XXXXX

After she was sure the soldier was gone, Sasha eyed the tray. The food looked good, but what if it was poisoned? That and it was made by these devils…

"_Well, beggars can't be choosers" _she thought as she reached out for the tray. She didn't want to eat something the Eldians had made, but she was no use to anyone if she starved to death. That also meant she had to take the risk that the food might be poisoned _"But if they wanted to get rid of me, they'd just kill me, right? No point in trying to poison me."_

And even if they did want to do that, they could just force some down her throat without hiding it in to the food. Yeah, it was probably safe.

Cautiously, she took the first bite, her eyes widening as she tasted just how good it was. Whoever had made this had to be someone different than the one who usually-

"Hm?" the soldier's words rang in her head _"Was _he _the one to make this? If so then it's such a waste that he's a soldier!"_

Sasha quickly shook her head. No, this was no good. She mustn't compliment a dirty Eldian, even if it was just in her mind. But… _"It's just so good!"_

XXXXX

Nikolo had ended up with the short straw again and was taking food for the female soldier, wondering if she'd actually eaten her previous meal. She'd seemed really hungry, but with her attitude towards Eldians, he couldn't be sure. And yet, when he got there, he saw the empty tray.

He could've commented on it, part of him even wanted to, but in the end, he chose to leave her alone. It wasn't right to go after someone who was already down. So, he settled on a simple greeting before slipping the tray in from the hatch, turning to leave before either could annoy the other. However, he might have been too slow as he heard her say: "Hey"

"Yeah?" Nikolo said, turning back to her. It's not like they wanted to keep people locked up like this, so if she was going to reach out, he was going to listen "Was it… was it you who made the food yesterday?"

"…Yes" Nikolo replied, wondering why she'd ask. Actually, hadn't he told her that he did?

He looked at her. She seemed to want to say something more, but hesitated. Would she talk if he edged her on, or would she just clam up? _"It's probably better if I shut up for now."_

"Why?" her question caught him off guard. Blinking, he repeated: "Why what?"

"Why were you cooking?" she asks as she pulls the tray closer to herself "Aren't you a soldier?"

"I am" Nikolo said, shrugging "But the cook wasn't feeling well yesterday, and since I cook as a hobby anyway, I volunteered to take his place."

She was watching him as he spoke, but once he finished, she turned her attention to the food. Taking a spoonful of the soup, she brought it to her mouth. After swallowing, she complained with a frown: "It's plain."

"_Spoiled brat" _was Nikolo's first thought on that. Well, he supposed that someone who wasn't used to food regulations like almost everyone inside the walls were would be pickier of what they ate "The one you made was way better."

Nikolo blushed at the unexpected, completely out of nowhere -compliment.

"I ah… thanks" he stuttered, hoping that she wouldn't take a notice of his sudden embarrassment. If she did, she didn't comment on it; she simply kept eating. After a while, she spoke again: "Why did you become a soldier? I'm sure you could've made a living as a cook!"

Nikolo blushed again. It's not like this was the first time he'd been told this, in fact, many in the 104th training corps had said the same, but somehow this was different… perhaps because it was coming from an enemy who had no real reason to compliment him it felt more genuine?

Looking at the woman again, Nikolo realized that she'd stopped eating for the time being and was now looking at him, waiting for an answer.

"It's… complicated" he said "And personal."

"Hmm…" Sasha hummed, thinking it over for a second "Family reasons?"

Nikolo's eyes widened, which made Sasha grin before she said: "Bull's eye, huh?"

Nikolo blushed, _again_, though this time it was from a different type of embarrassment. Just what was with this woman, constantly getting him to blush!?

Sasha laughed, but her smile soon faded to a sad one as she averted her eyes.

"Me too…"

That caught Nikolo off guard. Not the fact that she joined military for family reasons, but the fact that she would share something so personal with him. A small part of him wanted to know more, not that he knew why, but since she hadn't asked more from him, he didn't want to pry, either.

"Just…" he wanted to change the topic "Eat that before it gets cold, okay?"

"Yeah" Sasha said, but before continuing she looked at Nikolo again: "…Think the cook will be feeling unwell again any time soon?"

"He might" Nikolo answered, pretty sure he knew why she was asking. Wanting to check, he said: "But even if he won't, I can still cook for you if you want."

"You would do that!?" Sasha asked, excited as she leaned forward, closer to the bars. However, a thought soon occurred to her and she frowned "What's the catch?"

"There is no catch" Nikolo said, but he could tell she was not buying it "I'm just trying to be kind; we're not bad people you know."

She still wasn't convinced, he could tell. A sudden urge to mess with her came to him and, wanting to see if he could make her blush in return, he said with a smirk: "And you have a cute smile; maybe I'll get to see that again if I cook for you?"

"_Success" _he thought as she blushed, leaning away from the bars now with a mortified look on her face "Are you trying to _flirt _with me!?"

Now it was, once more, Nikolo's turn to blush.

"No!" he quickly denied "I'm not!"

"Are too!" Sasha argued, scooting away from the bars "Like you wouldn't want a piece of this!" she gestures to her body. Nikolo's eyebrow twitches on his red face as he says: "Isn't it _you _who's trying to flirt with _me_?"

"I'm just stating the facts" Sasha says, crossing her arms "Or what, do you not swing this way?"

"If by "this way" you mean stinky, uncooperative war prisoners then no, I don't" Nikolo hissed back, pleased to see her face go red again. Angrily, Sasha stood up and came right over to the bars, practically screaming at him: "I'm only stinky because some assholes insist on keeping me locked up in a cage like some animal!"

Childishly thinking that he didn't want to lose, Nikolo takes a few long steps to get right in front of the cell with the only thing between their faces being the bars. Once there, he snaps: "Well maybe you wouldn't be treated like an animal if you stopped acting like one!"

They glared at each other, their faces almost touching the bars. It was Sasha who broke the eye contact first, unable to hold in a chuckle. After that, she started laughing hysterically.

Nikolo stared, dumbfounded, before the ridiculousness of the situation sank in for him too and he laughed as well. They were trained soldiers in the middle of a fateful war, yet here they were, fighting like a pair of children. She sure pulled out the ridiculous side of him, way more so than even Connie did.

"What the hell's going on in here!?" Nikolo froze at Jean's voice. Sasha was still laughing, but was now trying to stop as she too heard the rapid, loud steps coming towards her cell. As Jean stepped in to the room, both had themselves under control and Nikolo had packed away from the cell.

"Nothing" he said "Just… getting to know each other?"

It sounded like a question; he knew it did. Jean was eyeing him up and down, checking if he was really okay. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he turned his attention to the prisoner, who also seemed fine, if not a little redder in the face than he would've expected.

"Whatever. Now c'mon, the captain's calling for us" Jean said "Hopefully he won't make us mop up the whole building."

Sasha snorted from her cell, and Nikolo threatened to hand _her _the mop if it happened. Sasha just stuck her tongue out at him as a reply, making Nikolo roll his eyes. Jean was watching them, eyes going back and forth between the two, but he said nothing, leaving as well when Nikolo walked away without saying a word.

XXXXX

After their footsteps faded, Sasha sat back down to eat. She wouldn't help these devils, these _people_, she wouldn't betray her country, but she had to admit that, perhaps, not all of them were the monsters she thought they were.

"_Or maybe monsters just mature slowly?" _she thought with a grin, seriously considering asking that to the guy's face. She was probably going to be stuck in the cell for quite a while, so she might just as well get some humor out of it while she was there.

XXXXX

"You two seemed to get along surprisingly well" Jean commented to Nikolo once Levi let them go.

"Him and who?" Connie asked.

"The prisoner"

"You mean Miss Barks Hard and Bites Even Harder?"

"Yeah, that one" Jean confirmed, unconsciously rubbing his hand that the woman had bitten "Just how did you manage that?"

"I got her food" Nikolo says with a shrug "She likes my cooking."

Connie laughs.

"Well what'd ya know, looks like the route to a woman's heart goes through her stomach!"

"Pretty sure it's only the case with that one" Nikolo says with a chuckle. No matter if that was true or not, he was going to make sure that she had enough to eat, including his cooking. Perhaps, with time, he would get her to warm up to them.

For some reason, he truly hoped that.

**A.N: Honestly, this my favorite from the NikoSashaWeek and I hope I'll be able to write a longer story like this with the roles swapped sometime.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A.N: So, I did get inspiration from the new chapter, which means you'll be getting something else than NikoSasha after all. **

**WARNING: Slight spoilers for the newest chapter, chapter 123.**

**Little Devils**

"Haha, no way" Onyankopon laughed as Levi brought up the idea of Connie and Sasha trying to feed a _carrot_ to a _car_. Yet not even a minute later, the duo _was _off to buy a carrot.

"They're buying a carrot!" he said in disbelief, following Levi who was already walking over to the two. The morons had to be stopped; they were already attracting unwanted attention as it was, but if people actually saw them try to feed a car… _"I don't want to even think about it."_

"Oy idiots, that thing doesn't eat" Levi pointed out, pulling Connie back by the back of his shirt as he tried to go over to the car. Connie and Sasha looked at the captain like he was an idiot, and Sasha was the one to voice it: "Captain, everything needs to eat."

"Everything _living_" Onyankopon pointed out "Cars are machines, just like the train you now have at home."

Onyankopon was careful to not say "Paradis", just in case. Connie and Sasha stared at him blankly and he stared back, raising an eyebrow. The duo looked at each other before grinning, turning their sheepish smiles to Onyankopon "Oops."

"Oops indeed" the man said "Please try to avoid doing anything that would attract too much attention."

"Sorry" the two chorused, but Onyankopon had a feeling that they'd do it anyway. Not on purpose, they weren't bad natured, but they were such airheads.

"Well, if a car won't be eating the carrot, then I'm gonna eat it" Sasha decided, reaching out for the carrot, but Connie held it away from her "Don't; let's eat something new instead. No need to fill ourselves with this."

"You're right!" Sasha said in delight "Hey Onyankopon, do you want to eat the carrot?"

"…Sure" he said, sweat dropping. In truth he just wanted to confiscate it just in case the two tried to feed it to a car anyway. He wouldn't put it past them. But well, aside from the unwanted attention, it wouldn't be so bad. They just wanted to feed and make friends with an unfamiliar animal _"They're like a pair of kids…"_

At least as long as those two tagged along, no one would even consider they were devils of Paradis. Not when there were a pair of childlike morons like those two with them.

"Are you gonna eat that carrot?" Levi asked, and Onyankopon realized he was still holding on to it.

"Nah" he said, dropping it. Levi eyed it, saying: "Sasha's going to kill you if she finds out you wasted it."

Onyankopon laughed, but then remembered that he'd laughed at what the captain had said earlier, too.

"You _are_ joking, right?"


	16. Chapter 16

**A.N: Alright, time for NikoSasha again!**

**Day 3: Fluff**

"What's wrong?" Sasha asks from the doorway, almost making Nikolo drop the pan he'd been drying in fright, for he had not heard her coming "You look kinda down."

"I'm not down" Nikolo replied hastily, not meeting her eyes "I'm just a little… tired."

Sasha stared at him, Nikolo knew that, but turned his back and went back to work, hoping she'd drop it. But she didn't.

"You're lying to me" she stated, it was not a question "What's wrong?"

No answer. Sasha pouted, walking over.

"Nikolo" she said, forcefully turning the man to look at her "Tell me."

Nikolo had no intention to talk, but when Sasha leaned closer, he felt his resolve waiver. She was way too close! He had to get her to go away somehow!

"It's nothing you need to worry about" he tried to convince her "I'm not going to cause any kind of trouble, I swear."

"That's not what I'm worried about" Sasha said, much to his surprise. Taking Nikolo's hand in hers, she says: "I trust you."

"Then can't you just drop it?" if she really trusted him, why pressure him like this?

"No" she said firmly, frowning "Because I'm worried about _you_."

"_Are you really?" _Nikolo couldn't help but wonder, still feeling that an island devil, something that he had been raised to hate all his life, couldn't possibly worry about others like this, especially not a Marleyan soldier like him. Even so, he had to admit that she sounded genuine, looked so as well. Perhaps she was an exception to the rule?

"It's nothing, really" he hesitated "I'm just… a little lonely, I suppose."

Sasha blinked, tilting her head "Lonely?"

"Yeah…" Nikolo said with a sigh. Now that it was out, he might just as well tell her "I know I have Grior here with me, but he doesn't exactly talk much and when he does, well, he's not the nicest person to be around."

Sasha couldn't deny that; the guy was a jerk, though she had thought he only treated her and the other Eldians badly. Apparently not; he must've been born with a stick up his ass.

"_Focus Sasha; Nikolo needs you" _she scolded herself "Are you homesick?"

"A little" he said with a shrug. Sasha chewed on her bottom lip, knowing that there wasn't really anything she could do for him. They couldn't let another Marleyan here besides him and Grior; the ones that weren't already positioned elsewhere were too hostile to be let out of the prisoner camps. She couldn't visit more often, either; she was already risking pissing off her superiors with how often she snuck in here. Besides, she wasn't sure if her presence even helped with Nikolo's loneliness in the first place; she could tell he was still wary of her.

"Well, that's just how life is" Nikolo said, smiling a little uneasy smile "Now, what brings you here?"

Brightening up, Sasha cheered: "You promised to make cookies!"

Nikolo laughed.

"Yeah, I did"

XXXXX

Sasha was deep in thought, trying to figure out how to help Nikolo. He'd seemed relatively cheerful for the rest of her visit, even when Grior showed up, stick up his ass like always, but something told Sasha that it wouldn't last. She needed to find a bit more permanent way to cheer him up.

"_Maybe I could help him make friends with people who live near the restaurant?" _she wondered _"No, he probably wouldn't be too keen on that. Neither would his neighbors, at least not when they'd notice that he doesn't actually want to make friends with them."_

What could she do?

"Eep!" Sasha let out in surprise as a mouse ran out from under her bed. Not that she was afraid of mice, but it startled her. It was weird though; Levi forced them to keep the place so clean. Maybe she should find a cat-

"Ah!" a sudden realization hit Sasha; she knew what to do. With a grin she ran out of the door, ready to solve Nikolo's problem.

XXXXX

"Nikolo!" Sasha calls out as soon as she slams the door open, giving Nikolo a scare again.

"Stop doing that!" he hisses at her as he turns around, raising a sceptic eyebrow as he sees Sasha hiding her hands behind her back "What are you hiding?"

"I have something that might cheer you up" she grinned, bringing her hands out "Meet Kitty!"

Nikolo stared. In the woman's arms, there was a small black and white kitten, clearly trying to get away from Sasha, clawing at her already scratched hands. She should clean those wounds before they got infected.

"Is that thing even tame?" he asked, eyeing the angry little creature "Where did you get it from, anyway?"

"From a farmer outside of the city" she said, shrugging "I'm sure she'll warm up to you once she gets some food!"

"Just like you?" that was the first thing that came to his mind, and he just blurted it out. Sasha blushed, glaring at him "I think I'll just call it Sasha, after you."

"You can't!" the girl protested "Her name is Kitty!"

"You have a poor imagination" Nikolo said with a laugh. It was genuine, and to Sasha he looked really happy "Fine then, Kitty it is."

"Yay!" Sasha cheered, her hold on the cat loosening as she did, causing the kitten to jump off and run to the other side of the room "Oh no! Come back, Kitty!"

Nikolo watched in amusement as Sasha panicked, chasing the cat all around the room. If he didn't already know, he'd never believe it if someone told him that this cute airhead running around his kitchen was one of Paradis' best soldiers.

"_Wait, cute?" _he thought, shaking his head. No, he mustn't go there. It was the cat, the cat was the cute thing running around his kitchen, not the soldier. No, certainly not the soldier. Realizing that he needed something to do to get his thoughts in order, he stopped Sasha when she tried to sprint by him, saying: "That's not how you catch a cat, you know."

Turning to him, Sasha asks: "Then how do I catch it?"

"I'll show you" Nikolo says, getting some meat from the storage. Seeing the look on Sasha's face, he clarifies: "This is _not _for you."

"I know that" she huffs, watching curiously as Nikolo crouches down, putting the meat down at an arm's length "Now what?"

"Now we just wait" the cook told her. One might think Sasha was bad at waiting, but that was obviously not true. She used to be a hunter; knowing how to patiently wait had been part of her job.

When the cat started walking towards the piece of meat, she asked: "So we nab it when it reaches for the meat?"

"No" Nikolo denied "We'll let it get used to us."

Sasha watched mesmerized as Nikolo patiently waited for the cat, slowly extending his hand a little bit when it finished eating, but not enough to actually touch the cat. He just waited for it to come to him, which it soon did, smelling his hand. Nikolo was petting it in no time "Whoa, you're good at this!"

"I know" Nikolo said, perhaps a bit too proudly "It worked with you too, didn't it?"

Sasha swatted him on the head, laughing "But I never got any pats."

Nikolo blushed hard, choosing to ignore that comment to avoid further trouble. Geez, that woman.

"Can I try too?"

"Sure, but move slowly" Nikolo said "You probably scared it by moving too fast earlier."

"Kinda like I always do with you?" Sasha teased as she crouched down, laughing when Nikolo glared at her.

"Don't act like I'm the only one who gets startled by your hyperactive nature" he hissed, his attention shifting to Kitty as it pushed its head against his palm. Smiling, he considered it safe enough to scoop it up, doing so slowly. It didn't seem to mind "See? She's tame; you just didn't handle her right."

"I know" Sasha said with a pout, reaching out with her hand but instantly pulling it back as Kitty hissed "She doesn't like me!"

"Seems like it" Nikolo said, sweat dropping "Maybe we should call her Grior instead, then?"

Sasha laughed, and so did he.

"But she's a girl" Sasha protested, suddenly frowning and looking at her hand. One of the scratches was bleeding "She _really _doesn't like me."

Seeing the blood, Nikolo put the cat down immediately.

"Let me see that" he said, taking Sasha's hand in his without waiting for a permission, observing the wound.

"It's fine; it's just a little cut" Sasha insisted. Nikolo looked at her face, asking: "Are you sure?"

"Yep!" Sasha smiled cheerfully and, suddenly, Nikolo became aware of just how close her face was to his. She was cute, beautiful… he wanted to touch that face. And he did, carefully cupping her cheek.

"Nikolo?" Sasha asked, startled by the sudden touch as heat started to rise to her cheeks. However, she didn't pull away. Instead, she just stared at him and he stared right back. He leaned a little closer. So did she. Sasha saw him close his eyes and followed suit. Their faces were now very close to each other; she could feel his breath on her face and-

"Ow" Sasha suddenly blurted out, causing Nikolo to jerk away like he had been burned as he opened his eyes, looking at Sasha in alarm "What? Did I hurt you!?"

"No" Sasha said, glaring down at her lap "Not _you_."

Nikolo followed her gaze, seeing Kitty on her lap, nails digging through the fabric of her skirt.

"The little fur ball needs a lesson" Sasha hissed. Before she could get a hold of the cat, it jumped off and ran away, Sasha following right after it. Nikolo stared at the woman and the cat for a while in disbelief before chuckling, a fond smile finding its way to his face. It was a little lonely here, but he'd survive. He wasn't alone.

…

Still, he should probably do something before the devil killed his cat.


	17. Chapter 17

**A.N: NikoSasha time! This is kind of a sequel to the first day that I published around a month ago, but you can still understand most of this even if you haven't read it.**

**Day 4: Wedding**

When Sasha's lips met Nikolo's on the altar that day, it was the happiest moment of her life so far. They'd had their problems, but never anything they didn't end up solving and today, they had both said "I do." Now, they were a married couple. Nothing could ruin this day for her.

"May I introduce: Mr. and Mrs. Blouse!" the priest announced and their guests cheered. Ymir and Connie were even a bit _too _loud; Sasha wondered if they had made it in to a competition or something. She wouldn't put it past them.

XXXXX

"I'd ask if you're sure about this, but now's a bit too late I suppose" Jean jokes to Nikolo later that evening at the reception. The groom just rolls his eyes, throwing a jab back: "So Jean, when are _you _going to get married?"

"Don't you mean when is he going to find himself a woman?" Connie asks and the two laugh at blushing Jean's expense.

"It's not like you have anyone either!" Jean hisses at Connie as his defense. That's the moment Sasha decides to join them. She wraps her arms around Nikolo and pecks him on the cheek before saying: "You mean you don't know?"

"Know what?" Jean asked. Connie looked at her questioningly as well, but Sasha just gave him a look that, between the two of them, had meant "play along" for years now "Connie's together with Ymir."

"He _what_!?" Jean yelled. Nikolo, who also knew Ymir a little, was also shocked, but not as much. Still, he said: "I thought Ymir was with His- "

Sasha stomping on his toes shut him up in time, fortunately.

"Yeah, you heard her" Connie said smugly "Sure, we always had our fights and all, but in the end, she is truly a wonderful person."

Sasha had a hard time holding in her laughter, but fortunately Nikolo had caught on and pulled his wife closer, worsening Jean's view of her face. The groom himself had a better poker face, so he had no fear of ruining this.

"A wonderful person, you say?" Jean said with crossed arms, not quite buying it. And that was when Ymir decided to show up.

"Congratulations to the happy couple!" she was slightly drunk "Though it sucks to be you Nikolo; after the party, Sasha's sure to handcuff you to the stove and never let you leave the kitchen!"

"Of course I will" Sasha protested, making a point of hugging Nikolo tighter. She looked straight at Ymir when she added with a smirk on her face "I'll be needing him in the bedroom too after all!"

"Sasha!" Nikolo yelled with a red face, but his wife just grinned, noting that Connie and Jean were blushing a little as well. Ymir stared at her, jaw hanging open, before she burst in to laughter.

"What'd ya know, our Potato girl has finally mastered the art of witty comebacks!" she said "So, is he of any use in the bedroom?"

"I don't wanna know!" Jean yelled in desperation as he saw that Sasha was about to reply. He wasn't really embarrassed about the subject itself, but going in to too much details about the sex life of two of his friends was something he wanted to avoid "Just save it for the bedroom!"

"I'm sure they will, and so will we" Connie said, throwing his arm over Ymir's shoulders "Right Honey?"

Ymir was not stupid; she knew that if Connie did something like this, there must be a joke going on. Quick scan around with her eyes and she was able to tell that Sasha and Nikolo were in on it, but Jean was not. He was the target.

Normally, she'd never touch Connie with a stick or let him touch her, but if it was to prank Jean… oh well, sure, this one time. She could consider it an amusing wedding gift for the Blouse couple.

"Of course, Dear" Ymir replied, throwing both of her arms around Connie's neck "Not that I'm sure if I can wait that long~!"

Sasha gave herself a mental pat on the back for being able to keep her poker face, but that became meaningless as soon as she glanced at Jean, his jaw hanging open and eyes wide in disbelief. She couldn't help it; she just burst out in to loud laughter, getting the attention of the other guests while at it.

"Oh for god's sake!" Jean yelled as he caught on "You almost had me!"

"They did have you for a moment" Nikolo said, snickering "I saw your face."

Jean's face heated up now, and he glared at Ymir and Connie who were also laughing, leaning to each other for support. Damn assholes, every single one of them.

Nikolo, amused as he was, wasn't one to laugh out loudly and uncontrollably like his wife and most of her friends. However, he didn't mind; he was happy seeing her like this, happy and relaxed. And he had grown a soft spot for her friends as well- well, most of them at least, and was glad that they were having fun on the special day as well. At first, he hadn't been too keen on getting to know Sasha's friends, seeing them as too lively, but she'd had none of that. Once he'd gotten to know them a little, he'd gotten jealous because they were all so close to Sasha and each other. Not that he didn't have friends of his own, but he'd be lying if he said that he was as close with them as Sasha was with hers. Still, the jealousy faded with time and before he realized it, he had a place in their little gang. He couldn't get as deep in to it as Sasha was, he'd come in to the picture too late for that, but he no longer minded. He still had his role to play.

"Nikolo? Nikolo, are you listening?"

"Huh?" Nikolo said in surprise, looking at his wife who was still in his arms, staring at him "What is it?"

"It's time for the first dance" Sasha said, frowning in worry "But we can skip it if you're tired."

Nikolo laughed.

"No no, I was just lost in my thoughts" he said, starting to pull his wife towards the dance floor "I wouldn't miss this for any price."

Sasha was glad to hear that. Today, she was gladder than ever that she had stayed behind to loiter around the restaurant that one night just so that she could talk to the cook who triggered such familiar feelings in her. Up to this day she still had no idea why he felt so familiar, why it felt like they'd met before, but she no longer cared that much, either. He made her happy, he made her feel special, so whatever the reason that they'd even met was, the results were the best possible. No point in overthinking things.

"Something in your mind?" Nikolo asked quietly as they danced, not wanting others to hear.

"Just thinking about how happy I am" Sasha smiled "And the day we met."

Nikolo thought of it often, too. Those weird memories, visions or whatever they were seemed to make it clear that he knew Sasha from somewhere, but no matter how they thought of it or who they asked from, no one could give them any leads on where they might have met before the restaurant.

"Maybe we were lovers in our previous lives" he said, making Sasha laugh. That was a joke her boss, Hanji, had once made when they brought this up to her. Nikolo had been upset at the time that the woman didn't take their concerns seriously, but had ended up liking the joke. And besides, who knew, maybe it was even true. Sasha didn't exactly believe in reincarnation, but it's not like anyone had ever proved it to be impossible, so why not?

"Regardless of how we knew each other in our previous lives or if we knew each other at all" Nikolo started, getting Sasha's attention again "I love you in this life and all the lives to come."

Sasha's heart melted.

"I love you too."


	18. Chapter 18

**Day 5: Trip to Wall Sina**

Nikolo did not like this, didn't like this at all. Just why had Sasha asked him of all the people to accompany her to wall Sina? Actually, forget that. The real question was why on earth had he agreed?

"_Because she was making such an adorable face" _Nikolo thought, but shook his head to get rid of the thought immediately afterwards. No, he mustn't think of things like that. She was a freaking Eldian!

"Nikolo, you okay?" Sasha asked after noticing the guy shaking his head. She could tell he was nervous, constantly glancing around, probably trying to detect danger. But Wall Sina was perfectly safe, aside from some pickpockets of course.

"I'm fine" he said, ashamed that he'd let his weakness show. Not that it was the first time, but still.

Sasha didn't quite believe him, but she wasn't sure if she should press him, either. She knew that despite no longer being hostile to her, he was still wary, he didn't trust her. But they got along better than they used to and Sasha _really _didn't want to ruin that.

"Okay, just… tell me if something _does _start bothering you" she wondered if even that was too much "Okay?"

"…Sure" Nikolo said, wondering if Sasha was genuinely worried about him or if this was her way of trying to get information out of him _"No, it's probably the former; she doesn't seem to be very smart."_

That was a good thing; it would be a lot more stressing being stuck with a very perspective soldier who wouldn't miss a single word or move. Not that Nikolo was planning on doing anything, but some other soldier could be paranoid or read too much in to something that wasn't there. But not Sasha, he supposed, she was too much of an airhead. That realization helped him to relax a bit, and he actually started to look around the unfamiliar city as they walked.

It was bigger than the place he had been assigned to, and also fancier. It made him feel a little self-conscious in his plain clothes… not that Sasha fit in any better, but she didn't seem bothered by it. If it was because she was simple minded or because she was one to hold her head high wherever she went or what she wore, he couldn't tell. Fortunately, though, no one really paid them any mind. He supposed the locals were used to tourists and other kind of visitors from other areas… which reminded him, what were they even doing here?

"Sasha, why are-?" he was about to ask Sasha why were they in Sina in the first place, but when he turned to look at the woman, she was gone. He forced down the small panic that was about to surface for being left alone. Not that he thought he'd get in trouble right away; it's not like strangers would be able to tell he was a Marleyan. But what if he didn't find Sasha at all and would get in trouble for wandering around a town he wasn't assigned to? Even if he had some benefits from cooperating, he was still a war prisoner! _"Or what if I run in to a military police soldier who recognizes me?"_

That'd be no good; most of the MPs were rude to the Marleyans and always looking for ways to get them in trouble. Some were down right cruel, too.

"_Calm down and think! What would get Sasha to suddenly leave without saying anything?" _Nikolo wondered. The idea that she had planned to get him in to trouble from the very beginning surfaced in his mind, but he forced those thoughts away. No, Sasha wouldn't do that. The other Survey Corps soldiers might, but not her. She must've seen something that caught her attention… _"Of course"_

He knew what tended to distract Sasha: food. She must have been lured away by the sight or smell of some food stand. Now having an idea of what to do, he was much calmer. Looking around the area, he could see many food stands. And standing in front of one of them, staring at the goods, was Sasha.

"That greedy little pig" Nikolo mumbled in annoyance, making his way to Sasha in order to not loose sight of her again. Sasha just finished buying two of the same products when Nikolo reached her and she noticed him immediately "Oh, there you are!"

"More like there _you _are" Nikolo snapped "At least tell me before you walk off!"

"Sorry" Sasha said sheepishly before grinning, extending her hand to give the other treat to Nikolo "Here, this is for you!"

Nikolo blinked, not expecting that. Of course, normally one would since she bought two same things, but she was Sasha the Greedy; he was fairly convinced that sharing food wasn't really her thing. Still, he was a little hungry, so there was absolutely no reason to refuse.

"Thanks" he said, taking the treat and examining it. He could tell it was some kind of vegetable, but what, he wasn't sure. That was unusual; normally he was good at identifying foods… but well, this one was heavily coated with some kind of sauce and, judging from the smell, was heavily spiced, so it was no wonder. Cautiously, he took a bite.

"This… is a potato" he said in surprise. The spices and the sauce had strong taste, but there was no mistake about what lay underneath.

"Yep!" Sasha said with a grin, mouth full of her own food "Good, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" Nikolo couldn't deny it. He did think that the cook had overdone it with the amount of spices, but it didn't exactly taste bad or anything.

After they were finished, Nikolo asked: "What exactly are we doing here?"

"You see all the food stalls here, right?" Sasha asked. When Nikolo nodded, she continued: "You can't find this large variety of foods anywhere inside the walls aside from this part of Wall Sina, so here we are!"

Nikolo had no heart to tell her that this kind of selection of food wasn't rare in the outside world; she looked so excited. However, there was another thing he did dare to say: "So you dragged me here because you wanted food?"

"What? No!" Sasha was quick to deny "I took you here because I thought you might want to get to know the local dishes!"

She thought right, and if it was anyone else but Sasha, Nikolo would have believed her. However, since this was the food loving soldier he knew, he just raised his eyebrow, staring at her.

"…Okay, I admit it: I wanted to eat!" she finally cracked under his stare "But that's only half of it; I also wanted for you to have fun!"

Well, he supposed he could believe that.

"Alright, where to next?" he asked. Sasha smiled, taking his hand. Nikolo wanted to protest of course, but the surprise towards her actions killed the words before they came out, making the woman able to drag him around.

XXXXX

Nikolo hated to admit it, but he had had fun. The food had been good for the most part, excellent on one occasion as well, and he had managed to banter some new recipes from some fellow cooks-

"_No, not fellow cooks" _he reminded himself with a frown _"I'm a _soldier_, not a cook!"_

"Did you have fun?" Sasha asked, hoping that he would say yes. Or well, she had a feeling Nikolo wouldn't outright admit it, but something that proved that it hadn't been a complete waste of time in his opinion would do, too.

"…It was better than listening to Grior's complaining" Nikolo said after a while, regretting it as he saw Sasha's face fall. Not that he blamed her; after all, what _wouldn't _be better than listening to Grior's complaining. Wanting her to smile again, he added: "Maybe you can take me somewhere else next time?"

Sasha blinked, but immediately cheered up "Yeah!"

Nikolo blushed, unable to help it. She looked so cute when she was cheerful like this…

It was wrong to think so, he knew, but at that moment, he didn't care. He was allowed to think what he wanted as long as no one found out. And with how bad cards life had dealt him, it had no right to complain if he enjoyed the beautiful sight of this Eldian woman's smile.

And he sure as hell would.


	19. Chapter 19

**SPOILER WARNING: Spoilers up to the most recent chapter, chapter 124. And yeah, you guys are getting a break from all the NikoSasha.**

**Camaraderie**

So Eren was going to destroy the outside world? That was… bad. Of course, it was; lots of innocent people would die, Hitch knew. It was morally wrong of him to do this. Still, she realized that she wasn't as mortified as she probably should be at the idea of such a terrible deed, for she realized that if the outside world were to perish, they inside the walls would be safe.

Was it wrong of her to want to be safe? Was it wrong of her to want her friends to stay safe?

"_Fuck it; I have more important things to worry about right now!" _she reminded herself. She'd heard something crash just before Eren's announcement, and whatever that something was, it came from the basement. And Hitch had a sinking feeling that she knew exactly _what _had crashed, as unbelievable as it was _"I hope I'm wrong…"_

Or did she? She had been hoping for this for years, but for it to happen now when they were understaffed and shit was going down… did it really have to be _now? _

Taking a deep breath, she threw open the door to the basement, looking down to confirm her suspicions.

Annie was out.

"_What the heck am I supposed to do now?" _Hitch wondered. She was alone, having run in to no one on her way here. Sure, there were other people in the HQ, but she couldn't go back for them now, especially since Annie seemed to be awake and… choking?

"Shit" Hitch cursed, running down the stairs. It was stupid and dangerous of her to go near the warrior like this, but it's not like she could just let Annie choke. She just had to hope that the blonde wouldn't kill her in her confusion… or on purpose, which she supposed was equally likely.

"Annie!" she called out, immediately wondering if it was a mistake, but the girl didn't seem to have even heard her, too busy trying to sit up. Hitch kneeled over her, helping her sit up as she whacked her former roommate's back, trying to get her to cough up whatever it was that she was choking on.

"_Just what am I doing? This is so dangerous" _she reminded herself as Annie kept coughing. She had a gun; she could kill the blonde now and claim for it to have been self defense later. She'd be safe. Sure, they'd lose the female titan, but it's not like they'd had her during these years anyway, not to mention it'd probably take a while before anyone found the new one. But- _"Like hell."_

No way was Hitch gonna kill Annie. It would be the exact opposite of her orders, her job being to guard the crystalized warrior, but that wasn't her point.

This was _Annie._

Her squad mate, her roommate, her… friend, right? They hadn't known each other for long and had always thrown jabs at each other, or actually, Hitch had been throwing jabs that Annie ignored, but still, hadn't there been some form of bond between them? Would it still be possible to maintain that bond?

"Take it easy, Annie" Hitch says, the blonde still not fully aware of her surroundings. Hitch didn't know if it would work, but at this moment, she decided she'd take the chance. Annie was her friend; she was worth the risk.

"_And if the bitch kills me, I'll come back to haunt her for the rest of her short days"_

For in their comrades one should trust.


	20. Chapter 20

**A.N: Back with the NikoSasha! This one's a modern AU that can be taken as a sequel to days 1 and 4, but can also be read on its own.**

**Day 6: Family Life**

"Could you two knock it off?" Nikolo asked, his eyes landing on two of Sasha's siblings who were arguing at the kitchen table "I'm actually trying to get something done here!"

"So, you usually don't?" the girl asked, and the boy laughed in his expense. Nikolo's eyebrow switched, part of him regretting that he and Sasha had decided to invite her family over. He never had trouble with her parents, but the four rascals in the family, especially these two, tended to seriously get on his nerves.

"That's it" he said "Out of my kitchen, both of you. _Now_"

"Make us" the kids chorused, sticking out their tongues.

"If you insist" Nikolo said, marching over to the surprised kids and picking the boy up "Hey!"

He ignored the kid's protests, carrying him to the living room where the rest of the family, including his wife, was at. They looked at him as he approached, laughing when he dumbed the kid on the couch "One down, one to go."

He went to the kitchen again, soon coming back with the other kid and dropping her on the couch as well. Then, he stomped off and slammed the door behind him. Sasha was sure that if it had a lock, he'd use it.

"Well I suppose he's at least more comfortable with us now than he used to be since he does stuff like this" Sasha's father laughed. The woman couldn't help but agree, laughing along with the rest of the family.

"But you'd think he could take a joke by now" the girl said, tightening her ponytail "After all, he did marry Sasha of all people."

"You making fun of me, kiddo?" Sasha asked and her adopted sister just grinned. Sasha grinned back before taking the girl in to a head lock and ruffling her hair, saying: "And now you'll say sorry."

"Hey! Watch out for the hair!" Sasha's victim protested, getting the family to laugh.

"That didn't sound like sorry to me!"

"Ow" the girl complained "Okay okay, sorry!"

Sasha let go instantly, a grin on her face. Sitting one the couch, Kaya raised an eyebrow, asking: "Is that what you do to Mr. Nikolo too if he doesn't obey?"

This time Sasha cast a glare at Kaya, who just smiled back cheekily.

"Nikolo told me that Sasha threatens to raid the pantry every time she doesn't get her way" Mr. Blouse commented, making Sasha's jaw drop as she moved her disbelieving gaze on the man "He told on me!?"

"My dear, did you not know that men gossip among each other a lot?" her mother asked, getting her husband to look at her with a slight frown on his face "Isn't that what women do?"

"In this family, it is clearly the men who do so" Lisa Blouse said with a shrug "You've always been so chatty."

The kids and Sasha laughed at the face Mr. Blouse made.

"I wonder if Nikolo needs any help" he said. Sasha snorted.

"Nice try dad, but you're not running away" she said, heading to the door "I'll go check on him."

In truth, Sasha was slightly worried. She'd been glad when the kids stayed in the kitchen with Nikolo, but then he'd carried them out and ended up alone… while he clearly got more used to her family as time passed, he seemed to still feel uncomfortable around them and Sasha feared that he felt like he didn't belong there with them. Hand drifting to her stomach, she told herself that she couldn't let it continue, not anymore.

"Nikolo?" she called out as she opened the kitchen door.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking up from his cooking as she entered. Thankfully, he didn't look or sound upset in any way. Closing the door behind her, Sasha asked: "Do you still feel uncomfortable around my family?"

Nikolo stiffened, but soon sighed, letting his shoulders fall.

"Yeah…" he admitted "Don't get me wrong, they're wonderful people, but just… not the type of people I'm used to."

"Do you miss your own family?"

"_You_ are my family"

"You know what I meant" Sasha said with a pout, not liking how her husband was clearly trying to dodge the question. Sighing once more, Nikolo admitted: "Yeah, I do…"

"Sorry for making you part with them"

"What?" Nikolo asked, quickly denying it "You didn't do anything of the sort; _they _told me to choose between you and them!"

"But it's my fault you chose me" Sasha said, making Nikolo roll his eyes before he pinched her cheek "Don't think too highly of yourself; I actually do have a free will of my own."

"Really?" Sasha asked with over faked surprise. Nikolo's answer to that was to pinch her other cheek as well, pulling them "It wahwa joke!"

Nikolo released her and Sasha rubbed her cheeks, pouting. Her husband laughed.

"You should join us"

"I have to finish the dinner" Nikolo denied. Sasha opened her mouth to suggest that she'd take over, but Nikolo knew her well enough by now to know that that's what she had in mind and said: "No offence, but the recipe is too complicated for you. It has to be me."

Sasha pouted, but didn't argue. Not listening to him and messing up his what would have been delicious cooking once had been enough for her.

"…We're still gonna tell them tonight, right?" Sasha asked after a moment of hesitation.

"Of course," Nikolo said without missing a beat "…Unless you want to wait after all, that is."

Sasha shook her head; she wanted to tell them today.

"I'm going back to the others, but I'll leave the door open" Sasha said "And don't even _think _I'll let you be the one to do the cleanup; you need to talk to them, too!"

"But you can't overexert yourself" Nikolo pointed out, making Sasha huff "Like I would do so by simply cleaning the kitchen!"

Nikolo stared at her, and after a while Sasha got uncomfortable, giving in "…We can always make the kids do it."

"I suppose that'd work" Nikolo admitted "Now go back so that I can finish this."

"Am I in the way?"

"Always" Nikolo deadpanned, kissing Sasha's red cheek "This won't take long anymore."

XXXXX

Dinner time. The family was enjoying Nikolo's cooking, not that he had expected any different result. If there was something, he was confident about, it was his cooking skills. Still, everyone was almost done eating, and they'd decided to make the big revelation between dinner and the dessert. Nikolo was nervous about telling them, which was ridiculous. He and Sasha were already married adults and her family had accepted him; there was no reason why they would think this to be negative news in any way.

Glancing at Sasha, Nikolo noticed that she wasn't as lively as usually. She was nervous too.

"_Well, I suppose it's natural" _he thought, taking Sasha's hand under the table and squeezing it. She looked at him before smiling. It was time.

"Mom, dad" Sasha paused "You rascals too, there's something we want to tell you."

"Can't say I'm surprised; you don't normally insist that we _all _come when you invite us for a dinner" her father said "What is it that you want to tell us?"

Too late to back down, but it's not like they had a reason to. Still, Sasha couldn't help but feel nervous. As if reading her mind, Nikolo squeezed her hand.

"Mom, dad, I'm pregnant" she told them, plain and simple. It was better not to beat around the bush. There was a moment of silence, with Kaya being the first one to break it as she said to the other kids: "See? I told you sis wasn't getting fat!"

"Wha-!?" Sasha let out, blushing. She gave a glare to Nikolo as he muttered: "Well, that wouldn't be surprising, either."

The others laughed.

"Congratulations Honey" Sasha's mother said "Congratulations to both of you."

"I'm going to be a grandpa…" Sasha's father muttered before breaking in to a grin "And to think that only five years ago I kept worrying that my daughter would never settle down, never showing any interest in building a family…"

"Dad!" Sasha protested. She had never had any idea that her father had worried about something like that "Geez…"

"I don't think she would've ever gotten married without Mr. Nikolo" Sasha turned her attention to the ponytailed girl "It's a miracle she found a man who can handle her antics."

Sasha's protests drowned under her family's laughter. Huffing, she said: "Well, maybe it'll be _you _who'll end up as an old maid…"

"Too early to predict that" her mother said "Now Honey, aren't you going to finish your food? Are you feeling ill?"

"Hm?" Sasha glanced at her plate, realizing that she was the only one who still had something left. First time for everything, she supposed "Nah, I was just distracted. This won't take long!"

Knowing that it was true since it was his wife talking, Nikolo stood up and said: "I'll get the dessert ready."

That went well; they had been nervous for nothing.

XXXXX

That night they both lay awake in the bed; Nikolo could tell his wife was not sleeping since he didn't hear any snoring.

"Can't sleep?" he asked her quietly.

Sasha turned to face him, a small smile playing on her lips.

"No" she said "I have a lot in my mind, I guess."

"Everything went so well, though" Nikolo said, a little surprised that Sasha was having trouble sleeping now that the stressful revelation was finally out. Not that he was one to talk "Your parents are great."

"Yeah" Sasha said with a sigh "That's the problem here…"

"Huh?"

"Can we really match up to their level?" Sasha asked "Can we really raise our child properly? I'm not stupid; I know I'm not patient like my mother or reasonable like my father… what if something goes horribly wrong?"

Nikolo hadn't thought of that at all, but now that he did, he figured that he had more reason to worry than Sasha did. While her parents were great, his… well, not so much. They were stuck up, appearances over everything -kind of people. Nikolo himself had made a point of being different from them since his rebellious teenage years and, after meeting Sasha, it had become genuine desire to be a better person. But what if he'd unconsciously become just the kind of parent his own ones were?

Noticing that Nikolo had gotten lost in his thoughts, Sasha frowned.

"Did I make you worry?" she asked, already knowing the answer. Nikolo jolted, about to deny it, but stopped when he saw the look on his wife's face. It'd be too late to fool her "Yeah…"

"And this is exactly what I meant" Sasha said, burying her face in her pillow "What if I worry our child by saying wrong things? What if it ends up hating me!?"

"That's…" Nikolo didn't continue; he didn't know what to say. How could he ease her worries when he wasn't any calmer than she was? "We'll figure things out as they come."

"That's your answer?"

"I'm just as clueless as you are" Nikolo admitted honestly "I'm sure it'll be fine; your family will help us if we need it. There's Connie and Jean, too."

"Jean?" Sasha asked, making Nikolo laugh "Okay, maybe just Connie, at least when the child is still little."

"You didn't mention Mikasa" Sasha pointed out, but Nikolo just huffed at that "No, she creeps me out. But if our child ever needs a bodyguard, I know exactly who to contact."

Sasha laughed at that, and Nikolo followed soon after.

They may have no idea what they were doing, but they'd figure things out.

Snuggling closer to her husband, Sasha was sure they would, for together they could do anything.

Absolutely anything.


	21. Chapter 21

**A.N: Last chapter for the NikoSashaWeek! Sorry, not exactly all that Christmassy, but maybe I can cook something up in a couple of days?**

**But yeah, this one's kind of a what if -AU.**

**Day 7: Free Choice**

Year 854. Armin talks Eren out of attacking Marley, so Liberio never gets wrecked. Eren never gets the Warhammer.

Sasha doesn't die.

Year 855. With the help of their allies in Hizuru, Paradis Island scares the rest of the world in to staying away with the threat of the rumbling. Marley can no longer attack on its own and stays back.

Year 856. Paradis, now officially known as the nation of Eldia by the whole world, starts a rapid development and catching up with technology.

Year 860. Eldia and Hizuru become official allies.

Year 864. Eldia gets several more allies across the world.

Year 901. Peace negotiations with the rest of the world start.

Year 905. Marley attacks Eldia, but is quickly crushed by the country and its allies.

Year 906. Peace is finally officially forged. Officially, Eldia is no longer a nation of devils.

XXXXX

"So… peace, finally" Nikolo mutters after Sasha comes home, telling him the news.

"Yes!" Sasha cheers, taking him to a tight hug "I'm so glad we got to live long enough to see it…"

"Me too" Nikolo agrees, chuckling "And to think that I thought I wouldn't live to see the next day when I met captain Levi."

"I think many people thought that way when they first met him" Sasha says with a chuckle "And even after all these years, he's _still _scary."

"Tell that to our greatgrandchildren" Nikolo says with a scowl "They absolutely _love _their Uncle Cranky."

Sasha laughed.

"I know they learned the name from their grandma, but where she learned it is beyond me"

"Had to be either Commander Hanji or Mikasa" Nikolo says with a shrug "No one else would've had the guts to do it."

"Yeah…" Sasha trails off "I just wish Mikasa could've been here with us to see the peace."

Nikolo puts a hand on his wife's shoulder, not commenting on it. He'd never been close with Mikasa, but knew how much the woman had meant to his wife.

"Why couldn't she stay off the battlefield like we did? We were no longer the age fit for a soldier in the front lines…"

"Fighting was all that kept her together since Armin passed away, or so Jean said" Nikolo said with a sigh "Everyone needs something to hold on to… Mikasa didn't have that something."

"I suppose so…" Sasha said, smirking "So, what have you been holding on to all these years?"

"I wonder" Nikolo said, smirking back as he wrapped his arms around Sasha's waist "What could it have been?"

XXXXX

That night they both lay awake in their bed, and Sasha didn't need to wonder why her husband couldn't sleep.

"Are you thinking about visiting Marley?" she asked him quietly "Your parents and siblings?"

"My parents are very likely dead by now" Nikolo says with a sigh "But my siblings… well, I'm the middle one out of five, so at least one or two should still be alive. I really would like to go and see them…"

"Then go" Sasha said "It's not possible right now, but give it a few months to a year and we should be able to arrange it."

Nikolo looks at her in surprise, asking: "You aren't against it?"

He gets hit as a reply. Playfully, but Sasha is a recently retired soldier. Her punches hurt.

"You should know me better than that by now" she says "Family is important; it's understandable that you want a closure with yours."

Nikolo smiles, glad that his wife understood.

"Technically, they're _our _family" he said "Though they'll definitely have a hard time accepting that there are Eldians among us now."

"Are you saying you want me to come with you?" Sasha asks, her eyebrows shooting up. Nikolo frowns, asking: "Why not? It'll be safe with the peace and all; the only danger you'd have to face would be my bitchy family, but we can handle them together."

He reaches out to cup her face.

"Besides, I know everything about you and where you come from. I think it's a good time for you to learn these things about me too."

"I suppose you're right" Sasha said. In truth, she had always wished she could meet Nikolo's family one day, but had always kept the desire to herself since she didn't know how Nikolo would react, not to mention they couldn't know for sure if peace would be obtained in their lifetime. Even now that they did have it, it felt surreal "Do you think we should take the kids along, too?"

"The older ones can come if they want to" Nikolo said immediately, clearly having given it some thought "But I think we need to wait for things to settle down a bit more before even considering taking any of the younger ones outside Paradis."

Sasha didn't disagree, though she knew some of them wouldn't be happy about it. Their youngest grandchild especially was very keen on seeing grandpa's homeland one day.

"Armin would've liked to come along too I bet" Nikolo said suddenly, surprising Sasha "There would've been so much for him to see…"

"Yeah…" Sasha said, closing her eyes "He really would've…"

"Maybe we can bring Jean and Connie along instead?" Nikolo suggested "They'd probably like to see Marley too now that it's peaceful, not to mention they'll probably be against the idea of you going there alone with me."

"What are you talking about?" Sasha asked, looking at him with a frown again "They trust you!"

"They trust me not to cause you harm" Nikolo clarified with a sigh "But they _don't _trust my ability to keep you safe."

Sasha sweat dropped, realizing that it was true. Well, in all honesty, Sasha wasn't that trustful of his abilities, either. _She_ was the protector of this family, not Nikolo. Even so, she knew he'd always do his best for her. Always.

"Well, maybe it'd be fun to have them along" Sasha paused "If Hitch lets Jean come, that is."

"I wouldn't count on it" Nikolo said, laughing "But knowing you and Connie, you might be able to convince him in to sneaking out."

Sasha snickered; they'd done that a lot in their younger days. Hitch was always pissed at them, sometimes she even complained to Nikolo about it and got Sasha in to trouble. Good times…

"We've had great lives" she mumbled softly.

"Don't talk like they're about to end" Nikolo scoffed "We're not _that _old."

"The kids would beg to differ" Sasha laughed "Think we'll live to be hundred?"

"Maybe" the man smirked, pinching his wife's cheek "If you cut the amount of meat in your diet."

"No way" Sasha flat out refused "You already regulate it anyway."

"That I do" Nikolo said, pulling his wife closer "Because I want us to live together for as long as possible."

Sasha smiled, snuggling closer to her husband and closing her eyes.

"Your wish is my command."

**A.N: Then again, maybe peace is a little Christmassy?**


	22. Chapter 22

**A.N: I got something done after all! For a while I debated if I should publish this separately, but since I have this series of SnK one shots, I ended up just putting it here.**

**This is a very loose continuation from my last year's SnK Christmas one shot, but no need to read that to understand this one. Enjoy!**

**Christmas of the Scouting Legion**

"Keep walking guys, we still have a way to go!" Hanji told Levi and Eren as the two followed her through the snow in the mountains.

"Just where are we going to in the first place, commander?" Eren asked "It's about time you tell us, right?"

"You two know what time of the year it is, right?" Hanji asked. Levi raised an eyebrow, but Eren got what she was saying and answered: "Christmas is in a few days."

"Exactly!" Hanji agreed "And I found the most fabulous Christmas tree, so we're taking it back to the HQ!"

Eren and Levi stopped in their tracks. Exchanging looks, they made the nonverbal decision to turn on their heels and go back.

"Wait wait wait, where are you guys going!? We have a Christmas tree to fetch!" Hanji protested at the retreating men's backs.

"Get it yourself" was all Levi said "I don't want to be a part of this."

"Oh, c'mon you two!" Hanji protested, catching up with them "We all had so much fun last year, right?"

"…We did" Eren admitted "But surely you can handle one tree on your own, commander."

"Not this one; it's huge!" Hanji disagreed "So I need you to carry it back in your titan form!"

"…"

"…"

Without another word, both Levi and Eren picked up the pace.

"Guys guys, I'm serious!" Hanji said, jumping to Eren's feet "C'mon Eren, please! Just this one time!"

"No" Levi told her, crossing his arms "He's not your delivery boy."

"You just go drink your tea" Hanji jabbed at him, turning all her attention to Eren and making her best puppy dog face "Please, Eren!"

"…"

The trip ended with a fifteen-meter titan carrying an almost equally tall tree on its back.

XXXXX

"Shitty Glasses, the tree is way too big" Levi pointed out with an irritated scowl "It won't fit in the HQ."

"…" Hanji realized that as well. She had thought it'd be fine, but it seemed the tree was a few meters too tall.

"_It'd be a shame to shorten such a brilliant tree… well, time for plan B, then!" _she thought "We'll keep it outside."

"Really?" Levi said "All this to have a damn tree outside?"

"Yes, all this to have a damn tree outside" Hanji confirmed gleefully "Time to look for a good place. Let's go, Eren!"

The titan followed, but not before Levi caught him rolling his eyes. The young man clearly wasn't any more excited about this than the captain himself was.

"_Not that I care as long as it's not _me _carrying that damn tree"_

XXXXX

"The commander is… really in to it this year" Onyankopon pointed out as he observed Hanji running around, giving orders regarding the Christmas preparations.

"She's under a lot of stress; this is probably her way of trying to relieve it" Armin said diplomatically, trying to not be too hard on his superior "She'll calm down eventually."

"She'd better, or people's clothes won't be the only red thing around this Christmas" Levi said from where he sat cleaning the tree decorations, making Onyankopon look at him worriedly. Armin paid the man no mind, knowing he wasn't as serious as one might think.

"As cheerful as ever I see, captain" Yelena said as she came over, carrying a box that was almost the size of Levi "Not much of a Christmas person, I assume."

Levi simply gave her a look that told her he was tired of her shit. Charming.

"What's in that box, Yelena?" Armin asked as he came closer, wondering if he'd be able to carry it with the same effortlessness as Yelena did "Is it heavy?"

"Not really, but the size makes it a little difficult to carry" she cast a knowing smile at Levi "Or at least it would to _some _people."

The captain gave her a glare, and Armin wondered if he should just bail.

"There you are!" Hanji called out as she spotted Yelena, running over in a flash "I needed that!"

"What is it?" Armin asked curiously as Yelena put the box down and Hanji started unpacking it. Out came a statue of a white bearded man dressed in red "That's…" Armin paused, trying to remember the name of the fictional character "Santa Claus?"

"Yes!" Hanji confirmed with a grin "I actually ordered this from the Reeves company last year, but it didn't get finished in time. Now we can finally use it!"

It seems Hanji had been more in to it already last year than they had thought.

"Yelena, give me a hand so that we can find a place for this" Hanji said, and the woman dutifully picked the statue up again "As for you two, help Levi with the decorations."

"…Sure" Onyankopon said, knowing he had nothing better to do at the moment anyway. Armin, however, declined.

"Actually commander, there are some preparations I have planned to do myself, if you don't mind" he said. Hanji raised an eyebrow, asking: "_Christmas _preparations?"

"Yes ma'am"

"Then you're dismissed!"

Hanji and Yelena went off to their own business and, as Levi watched Armin go, he couldn't help but comment: "I wonder if the little shit actually has something to do or if he just bailed on us."

"Armin playing hooky?" Onyankopon asked in surprise "He doesn't seem like the type to do that."

Levi snorted.

"You're in for a real surprise one day if you think that" he said, now observing how Hanji made Yelena walk in circles as she couldn't come up with a good place for the statue. As amusing was it was to see the giant woman wandering around aimlessly under Hanji's orders, the whole Christmas -thing was starting to annoy him. Looking at Onyankopon, he remarked: "And this mess is all your fault."

XXXXX

"I can't believe the commander is making us do this" Floch complained as he wrapped up a Christmas present "We have far more important things to do than prepare for some stupid Marleyan party!"

"I don't mind the break, but I do wonder if the Scouting Legion's budget can handle all this" Jean said "That's what the commander used to get the gifts, right?"

"She's out of her mind" Floch said "Is she really suitable to be a commander?"

Jean frowned at this.

"Careful, Floch" he said "Walls have ears."

"Yeah, I know" he said with a frustrated sigh "And heads and feet and arms; the walls are freaking titans! That's another thing we should be looking in to instead of- "

Mikasa, who had been packing presents silently until now, cut off Floch by abruptly standing up.

"Mikasa?" Jean questioned, but the woman ignored him in favor of walking over to Floch, ripping a piece from the tape roll in her hand off before smacking it on the redhead's face, his mouth to be more specific, effectively silencing him. She turned her gaze to Jean, who immediately got the hint and looked away, continuing to work.

As Mikasa saw that Floch was about to remove the tape, she took another one and crossed it over the first one. Floch glared at her, but Mikasa just raised an eyebrow, looking at him coldly. Floch was able to hold her gaze for a few more moments before no longer having the guts and looking away, returning to his work. Satisfied, so did Mikasa.

XXXXX

"_You _I can understand" Connie said as he gestured to Eren with a broom "But how did _I _end up on the HQ cleaning duty?"

"Hanji probably wanted you out of the way" Eren said flatly "You have the tendency to start trouble."

"Wha-!?" Connie was shocked "Like you're one to talk, Mr. Getting-Kidnapped-Is-My-Hobby!"

Eren cast his friend a glare, saying: "I kept getting kidnapped because I'm irreplaceable, you know."

"Uhhuh, sure" Connie said, unimpressed "Everyone wants to steal Levi's favorite slave who cleans like a pro!"

"…"

Wordlessly, Eren chucked the rag he'd been cleaning with straight to Connie's face.

"Alright" Connie said, taking the rag off "You're just asking for trouble."

"Bring it" Eren told him, and soon they were battling with mops and brooms, trying to swipe each other in the face with them. Connie was still shorter, so one would think that Eren had the upper hand but, like always, Connie's reflexes made up for his size. He was not one to be taken lightly.

"What are you two doing?" the young men froze, momentarily fearing they'd been caught by Levi, but soon they relaxed as they realized it was just Yelena "You've made a mess, you know."

Looking around, Connie and Eren realized it was true. Shoot.

"…We need to clean this up before the captain finds out" Eren said.

"Yeah, we probably should" Connie said, turning to Yelena "Since you're here, give us a hand, would you?"

Yelena just smiled, as usual, and the duo paled as she stepped aside, revealing a very pissed off Levi behind her.

"Shit"

XXXXX

"Sasha for the last time, those are for everyone!" Nikolo yelled, whacking Sasha's hand away from the gingerbreads with a wooden spoon, ignoring her yelp "Keep your chubby hands off of them!"

"My hands aren't chubby!" Sasha protested with a pout "They're just swollen because you keep hitting them!"

"I wouldn't hit if you weren't such a thief, you little pig" Nikolo muttered "Can't you go help with the Christmas tree or something?"

"But I want to be here with you!"

Nikolo blushed, but forced it away before Sasha could see and instead said: "You mean you want to be here with the food, right?"

"…."

"Sasha"

"Can't it be both, okay!?" Sasha finally broke under pressure "You make the best food, but I also like _you_!"

Nikolo blushed again, and this time Sasha noticed.

"And you like me too" she said with a confident grin, but the stubborn POW just scoffed "Ahha, sure, who doesn't like greedy thieves in their kitchen."

"Meanie" the girl said, sticking her tongue out at him "We better get back to work."

Whacking her with the spoon again, Nikolo pointed out: "_You're _the one who keeps slowing us down in the first place."

XXXXX

"Thanks for giving me a hand Hitch" Armin said as he and Hitch decorated Annie's underground chamber for Christmas.

"No prob" the woman said "Though I would've liked to be invited to this "Christmas party" when you had one last year or, you know, to get invited _this _year!"

Armin laughed nervously.

"Yeah, sorry about that, it was just pretty hectic and all new. Even now Hanji's probably ordering everyone around like a slave driver."

"So that's why you ran off here?" Hitch snickered "Smart move."

"I didn't even need to lie; simply said that I have Christmas preparations elsewhere" the blond told, struggling to throw a bow over Annie's crystal "It's good to be trusted!"

"Except when it comes to reaching things" Hitch snickered as she snatched to bow that kept falling from Armin "The all mighty Colossal Titan can't even reach high enough to put a bow on a girl!"

"Ha, really funny" Armin said, gaping as Hitch climbed on the crystal "Hitch, you're not supposed to do that!"

"I'm in charge of the sleeping beauty; I can do what I want" Hitch told without missing a beat "As long as nothing goes wrong, nobody needs to know."

"And if something _does _go wrong?"

"Then we'll finally have some process" Hitch said with a shrug, patting the crystal "Our girl's been sleeping long enough!"

Well, Hitch wasn't wrong.

"_I hope we can celebrate Christmas with Annie some year for real"_

XXXXX

"_Christmas is so not worth all this" _Jean thought as he leaned on some empty crates, out of Hanji's sight. He'd thought the commander had been a real slave driver at first, but when they were done with the presents and got to the decorations, he realized he'd been wrong. The true devil had yet to come out _"She ought to give us a break…"_

He actually had it the hardest, being the best with the gear after Levi. The captain had fled under the excuse of cleaning, so Hanji had put _him _in charge of decorating the place with his gear. That would've been fine had Hanji not kept screaming instructions all the time… if it was so important, why not do it herself?

"Candy cane for your thoughts" Jean jolted, but relaxed once he realized that it was just Eren who popped down next to him. Raising an eyebrow, the young man asked: "A candy cane? Really?"

"I'm completely broke; take it or leave it" Eren explained, actually holding out a red and white candy "Well?"

Jean snorted, taking the offered treat.

"In how big trouble do you think I'd get to if I murdered our superior officer?" he asked as he unwrapped the candy.

"Make it look like an accident and you should be fine" Eren said, taking out a candy cane of his own "Maybe the tree will fall on top of her?"

"Yeah, maybe" Jean snorted "So who's she focusing her attention on now?"

"Sasha and Connie; Hanji made them take your place as soon as she noticed you were gone" the shifter told "She'll be pissed."

"If those two pisses her off even more before she finds me, she won't remember she has something to be mad at me about" Jean said "She's a bit too disorganized for that right now."

"Who's too disorganized for what now?" the boys looked up, seeing manically grinning Hanji standing on the crate, a box of candles in her hands "Break time's over boys, chop chop!"

They groaned, wondering how hard it would be to inconspicuously tip the tree over.

XXXXX

"We're done!" Hanji cheered, jumping up and down next to the tree.

"And with a good timing" Onyankopon said, wiping sweat from his forehead "Though we did work like crazy for all this; maybe we should make a do with a little less next year…"

"Nonsense; next year will be even better!" Hanji protested, making everyone at the hearing range groan. Frowning, Hanji asked: "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, commander" Eren said as he stood up, bringing his hand close to his mouth "Though there is one thing I forgot to hang on the Christmas tree. Permission to transform?"

"Permission granted!" Hanji said without missing a beat, clapping her hands together excitedly.

"Eren?" Mikasa questioned, but Eren ignored her as he backed away from everyone else before his transformation. After he was done, Levi came over with some Christmas ribbons, handing them to the titan.

"Make this a _peaceful _Christmas for us; we've all deserved it" he said. The titan nodded, the scouts and Marleyans watching as he took off towards the huge Christmas tree, but not before picking up the commander.

"Ooh, I get to hang it?" she asked, not protesting as Eren carried her closer to the tree. She only started to feel like something was wrong as Jean flew in with his gear on Eren's shoulder, reaching for the tree "Guys?"

As the titan and the horse faced young man grinned, Hanji knew she was in for it now. Had she had her gear, she would've bailed that very second but the thing is, she didn't. She was at their mercy.

"Merry Christmas commander" Jean said as he and Eren tied Hanji up to the top of the tree "Hope you'll have a peaceful Christmas up here; we sure as hell will- just not this high!"

"What? C'mon guys, after all I've done for you!" Hanji wailed, trying to break free, but Jean and Eren ignored her in the favor of saluting the cheering and laughing scouts. The mood getting the best of him, Jean yelled from the top of his lungs: "MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY!"

XXXXX

OMAKE:

"I can't believe you were so clumsy"

"Me? What about you? You should've caught me properly like a gentleman!"

"I told you not to climb on the crystal!"

"Well you could've actually stopped me instead of whining, oh brave scout!"

Armin and Hitch glared at each other from the awkward ankles they'd ended up on when Hitch fell off of the crystal, right on top of Armin, tangling them both with the giant bow.

"…"

"…"

"…So, when will Boris show up?"

"Knowing his lazy ass, around noon."

"Great" Armin said with a sigh "Merry Christmas."

**A.N: To quote Armin (and Jean): Merry Christmas!**


	23. Chapter 23

**A.N: I'm glad that I managed to actually write this idea down **_**now**_**, for the next chapter might very well make it meaningless. I do hope something along these lines could happen and that we ain't losing you-know-who to the darkness for good.**

**WARNING: Spoilers up to chapter 124!**

**Crossroads**

Connie advanced as fast as he could, as fast his equipment allowed him to. There was no time to waste; his mother had waited long enough. He'd free her from her nightmare _today_, he'd have her back.

…Back to a world were his father no longer existed. Or Sunny. Nor Martin. To a world that was completely different from the one his mother had lived in.

"_No" _he told himself _"The world has always been like this; we just didn't know it."_

The world was wide, wonderous… and cruel. Anyone could end up facing a death more gruesome than they might have ever imagined.

"_At least this kid knows of his fate" _Connie thought, glancing at the still unconscious warrior cadet _"He was aiming to become a titan anyway, so he must've expected to one day die in someone else's jaws."_

But his mother was different. She hadn't known of or asked for any of this. She didn't deserve all the horrible things she'd had to deal with.

But did anybody?

"_There are bastards in this world who would" _Connie was convinced of that. Noting that he was starting to be low on gas, the soldier slowed down. He had to make a small detour to resupply.

XXXXX

"Done" he breathed out as he finished filling the tank at one of the supply deposits. Now he had to hurry in case someone was following him, that was a given.

And yet, he couldn't bring himself to move.

He only stared at the kid's face. Sunny had been around that age when she died. Martin would be around that age _now_ if he was still alive. They, two completely innocent children, had been wrapped up in this war and killed as a result.

And now he was about to kill another innocent child himself.

"No!" he told himself harshly, shaking his head. Martin and Sunny had been civilians, innocent for real, but this boy was in training to become a titan out of his own choice and had most likely actively taken part in the war. He was partly to blame for Sasha's death. He wasn't some innocent child; he was a soldier.

A soldier, just like him.

"Shit" Connie cursed as he fell to his knees, holding his head "Shit…"

Just how had things turned out like this? How could he have let them turn out like this?

And more importantly, what was he supposed to do from here?


	24. Chapter 24

**A.N: No spoilers this time, for this is an AU. Vampire AU to be exact, starring Nikolo and Sasha… again. Maybe I should switch the main stars more often, but I just love the ship. Anyway, enjoy!**

**Iron**

It was irrational beyond belief, Nikolo knew, yet he still couldn't help but stare at himself in the mirror, looking at the two small wounds on his shoulder. The _bitemarks _on his shoulder. And it wasn't just any bitemarks; he had been bit by a vampire; he was sure of it.

He knew exactly how crazy it sounded, but he'd been thinking about it so much and it was the only explanation that made sense. The wounds he had looked exactly like the bitemarks he'd see in vampire fiction. They weren't in the usual place but, aside from that, they matched. Also, he'd gotten them from the woman he encountered on his way home; there was no doubt about it. It had been dark and there had been no one else around. She'd been staggering and at first, Nikolo had thought she was just drunk, but as she got closer, he realized that something was off, that she wasn't okay. And when he got to touching distance of her, trying to ask what was wrong, she had literally lunged at him. Nikolo had had no chance to defend himself, shock rooting him to the spot, as he heard his clothes ripping and felt teeth sinking in to his shoulder. It was only then that he'd tried to fight her off, but she'd been too strong, and soon he'd felt his consciousness slipping. When he had returned to his senses, he was lying on the street, his shirt partly shredded and shoulder hurting.

Naturally, he hadn't told anyone. What could he even say? That a vampire attacked him? No one would believe him even if he showed the bitemarks.

"_What's going to happen to me? Does being bitten by a vampire have side effects?" _that's what he was worried about the most since he hadn't died from blood loss. Didn't people change in to vampires in some stories? _"God, there's no way that's true, right?"_

Nikolo shook his head, rebuttoning his shirt. Maybe everything would be fine; maybe nothing would happen and this would all end up being a weird, unreal feeling memory.

…Is what he thought until he turned around, seeing a young woman standing in front of his open window, staring at him.

"What the hell!?" Nikolo yelled. Why was there a woman he didn't know in his apartment? Wait, how did she get in? This was the fifth floor!

"_Hang on" _Nikolo thought _"How did I miss her reflection in the mirror?" _

Dread filling him, the man glanced behind him, only to whip around completely as he saw nothing. Nothing, just his own reflection. The woman wasn't reflected on the glass.

"_What did the old stories say again?" _he wondered as he slowly turned to face the woman again _"They can't handle garlic, sunlight or crosses, they have… no… reflection…"_

Oh, dear lord.

There was a freaking _vampire _in his bedroom!

Nikolo backed up against the mirror, his wide eyes now completely on the vampire. How did she find him? …This was the same one that bit him earlier, right? Why was she here? Did she come to silence him!?

"Umm… hi?" the vampire spoke. Yes, spoke. It seems this thing could speak… hang on, should he reply to that?

"Sorry if I scared you" it continued, holding its hands up "I just need to talk to you."

Talk to him? What would a vampire possibly want with him?

"_This can't be real… I must be dreaming; I must've been doing that for a while already" _Nikolo deducted. He saw the vampire frown, probably because of his lack of answer, but it was fine. It was just a dream, right?

And yet, despite thinking that, when the vampire took a step forward, Nikolo downright fainted out of fear.

XXXXX

"Oh no no no no, what did I do!?" the young vampire, Sasha, panicked as the human male passed out right in front of her "Is he dead!?"

She went over, bending down and shaking him, but he didn't react.

"_Calm down; you've been taught about humans. They had this thing that you use to check if they're alive… what was it again… pulse? Yeah, that's the word… now where… neck?" _Sasha tried the man's neck, trying to feel something. And she… did? Yes, she was pretty sure she did. He was still alive, that was good.

"Okay…" she breathed out unsurely "What now?"

Should she go get help? …No, Connie would know what to do even less than she would. Jean would yell at her, and Sasha sure as hell didn't want to face Mikasa's silent fury. Eren was out of question; he'd just kill the human if he found out that Sasha had messed up. Armin? No, he'd do the same… she was on her own in this.

"_Well, the whole mess is my fault to begin with" _Sasha thought with a sigh. Normally, she would've messed with the human's memories after her meal, but with this one, she had panicked after the bite as she'd realized something.

This human was badly anemic.

She wasn't supposed to attack anemic or otherwise sick humans in the first place; her father had taught it to be immoral. However, she'd been so hungry that she didn't pay proper attention to who she chose, and once she'd started her meal, it had taken her great effort to stop. He'd already fainted back then.

"_Wiping his memory back then could've harmed him because of his condition… and now it's too late anyway…" _she just hoped he hadn't told anyone he was attacked by a vampire; Sasha wouldn't be able to handle it if their kind would be smoked out of hiding because of her _"I need to get him to agree to stay quiet."_

XXXXX

Nikolo felt a little groggy as he sat up in his bed, wondering when he got there in the first place.

"_Was I out drinking? No no, I never drink that much…" _what had happened again? He'd been looking at his wounds and… and… _"That better have been a dream!"_

"Are you okay?"

Seems like it wasn't.

"Wah!" Nikolo backed up against his wall as far as he could when he spotted the brunette vampire kneeling at his bedside, looking worried. Oddly human too, save for her a bit too pale skin and the fangs peeking out.

"You don't need to be scared; I'm not dangerous" the vampire girl tells him "I just wanted to talk."

So, a _vampire_ was telling him she was not dangerous? That there was no reason to be afraid?

"_Got it, I'm going to die" _Nikolo realized, still staring at the thing like a deer in headlights.

Realizing that the human wasn't believing her in the slightest, Sasha sighed. What was she supposed to do now? She was in horrible trouble if someone found out about all this, and the whole vampire race would be in major trouble if the fact that they existed became a widely accepted fact among humans. Her uncontrollable hunger had gotten her in to some trouble before too, sure, but never to this extent.

Nikolo just stared, wide-eyed, only blinking when the vampire sniffed. Wait, did it really? His ears must be tricking him, or maybe it was his eyes and _he _was actually the one sniffing- no, definitely the vampire. Why? What did it have to be afraid of?

"_It looks… pretty humanlike right now" _he realized as he watched the sniffling thing, the sniffling _girl "Should I… do something?"_

"Uh… are you alright?" he asked, immediately wondering if it was a mistake. Maybe he should've used this chance to run the hell out and get help while he still could.

Well, it was too late. The vampire's big, way too innocent looking eyes were already on him again.

"I'm fine… but I'll get in trouble if someone finds out I messed up" she answers.

"Messed up?" Nikolo repeated, momentarily forgetting that he should be wary "What happened?"

The vampire kept sniffling for a while before saying: "If someone finds out I attacked a human without wiping away it's memories afterwards, I'll get in serious trouble. And if the word about vampires spreads among humans, we'll all be in danger!"

Oh. Well, it seems she _did _have things to worry about… but wouldn't everything be okay if she just got rid of him?

"_Maybe she hasn't realized that; she doesn't seem very bright" _Nikolo realized. He chose not to pry in to the subject, just in case he was right. Instead, he asked: "So… you came here to ask me to keep quiet?"

"Yup!" the vampire girl confirmed, clapping her hands together in a prayer "Could you please, _please _do so?"

"…Sure" what else could he say? Not that he didn't mean it; after all, if he told someone they'd just think that he was crazy "But… if you're able to erase memories, why didn't you just do that in the first place instead of coming all the way here?"

"Oh yeah, that's another thing I wanted to tell you about" Sasha remembered "It can only be done after a bite, and the memories can be taken away up to two hours at max, so it's too late now. I didn't do it back then because it was too risky."

"Risky…?"

"Yeah!" the vampire says "There's way too little iron in your blood!"

"…Huh?" that wasn't something Nikolo expected to hear. First of all, he was pretty sure he took care of himself properly, so him being anemic was weird. Secondly, did a _vampire _of all things just consider it important enough of a thing to come and inform him about?

"You know, iron. I was taught that it's important for humans to have it in their bodies, but you clearly don't have enough. The taste of your blood was off and, now that I think about it, you smell kinda off too" the vampire rambled on, making Nikolo raise an eyebrow at the last part "Normally, I wouldn't have bitten you 'cause I would've smelled the problem, but I was so hungry that I wasn't paying proper attention. Sorry about that, but anyway, you really should go see a doctor!"

"…"

"…" the vampire started to fidget uncomfortably as Nikolo just stared, so eventually he spoke: "…That's all?"

"Yup" the chatty creature said, trying to fend of Nikolo's hard gaze with an awkward smile "That's about it."

"_Alright, now how do I get rid of this thing?" _Nikolo wondered, still too cautious to flat out ask the vampire to leave _"Surely it isn't planning to stay around until sunrise?"_

That would suck since sun had set only around two hours ago. Unfortunately, the vampire made no move to leave, still at his bedside.

"…Is there something you still need?"

"Eh? Well, no" the vampire said, fidgeting a little, and Nikolo was sure she blushed. That was weird "It's just, well, I've never actually _talked _to a human. Or seen one up close when I or someone else wasn't dining."

That made sense, Nikolo supposed. He was familiar with cats and dogs, but never really spent any time with other types of animals, the ones he used for food.

…

"_Don't compare yourself to what you eat, idiot!" That'll only give you a headache" _Nikolo thought, forcing the thoughts away. Wanting something else to think about, he asked: "Is it okay for you to be talking to me in the first place?"

The vampire averted her gaze suddenly, which told Nikolo all he needed to know.

"Not really" she admitted "But I shouldn't have come here in the first place, so if I get in trouble, it won't be much worse than it would've been anyway."

That made sense, in a way.

"Does the sun damage humans?" the vampire girl asked out of the blue, making Nikolo raise an eyebrow "What?"

"Does the sun damage humans? My friend says it can do so, but humans are active during daytime, so I don't really believe it" the vampire explained. Nikolo just blinked, not quite believing his ears. Why did she even…? _"Ugh, whatever. If I answer her questions, she'll probably leave once her curiosity has dimmed."_

"If we're exposed to it too much then yes, it does" Nikolo told her, and the vampire's eyes widened in surprise "Really!?"

"Yes, really" Nikolo said, unable to keep himself from chuckling "If we're exposed to sun too much, our skin will burn- ah, not literally, but it'll get red and sensitive to touch."

"Oh…" the vampire said in wonder "Has it happened to you?"

"Sure, many times" Nikolo admitted "It's not exactly pleasant."

"I can imagine; the sun's painful" she said, and Nikolo kept himself from pointing out that it was probably way more painful for her than him "I'm Sasha by the way."

"Huh?" Nikolo said once again. Did a vampire just introduce herself to him!?

"…Usually at this point, a vampire would answer with their own name" Sasha told, innocently tilting her head to the side "Do humans not do that?"

Unable to help himself, Nikolo blushed a bright shade of red.

"Your face got all red" Sasha innocently pointed out, leaning a little closer "Is that normal for humans? Does it hurt?"

"Ah, yeah… I mean, it's normal and no, it doesn't hurt" the man said, clearing his throat "I'm Nikolo."

"It's nice to meet you Nikolo!" Sasha beamed and, for some reason, Nikolo felt the damn blush returning "Say, can you tell me more about humans?"

"Like what, exactly?"

"Why do humans eat so many different things?"

Well, that was easy enough to answer, though Nikolo wasn't sure how much the vampire would understand or if he should keep it as short as possible.

"_She'll interrupt me if I babble too much, won't she?" _with that in mind, he started telling her about humans' needs for different vitamins and proteins, talked about the varying tastes and eventually even went to details about cooking. He was sure he was blabbing too much, but to his surprise the girl listened with rapt attention, occasionally asking a question or two. As time passed, Nikolo found himself completely relaxed, convenient that he wouldn't get himself killed that night. He even dared to ask the creature of the night a few questions of his own, which she answered with the best of her ability. As Nikolo knew nothing of vampires he couldn't be sure, but again he got the feeling that the girl wasn't very bright.

Before either of them realized it, they had talked in to early morning, the sunrise only an hour away.

"Whoah, it's getting late" Sasha was the first to realize as she looked out the window.

"Early, you mean" Nikolo corrected with a yawn "It's not safe for you to move around in sunlight, right? Maybe you should go home."

"Yeah, I probably should, least my boss locks me out of the house" Sasha shuddered "The shed would keep me alive, but the sunlight gets in there a bit too much."

Nikolo couldn't keep himself from feeling a tiny bit of sympathy towards her.

"Anyway, go see a doctor, okay?" right, Nikolo had forgotten about that. He nodded, and Sasha smiled as she went over to the window "Farewell, Nikolo."

"…Bye" was all Nikolo was able to say, surprised at how disappointed he felt by the idea that he'd never see the vampire girl again.

"_Don't be stupid; forget about her" _he thought _"She'd only bring you trouble anyway."_

XXXXX

Nikolo did go see the doctor, and it turned out he really _was _anemic. Nothing that some iron supplements couldn't fix, but still.

"_She was right after all" _Nikolo thought, his mind trailing off to the vampire girl. It had been a week since she broke in to his home, and he hadn't gotten her out of his mind ever since _"C'mon, get a hold of yourself!"_

Nikolo sighed as he unlocked his front door, ready to turn in for the night. His shift had been exhausting. Opening his bedroom door, he almost got a heart attack when he caught a familiar vampire going through his bookshelf.

"What the hell Sasha!?" he yelled, getting the girl's attention.

"You're back!" the girl cheered. Staring at her, Nikolo asked: "Just what are you doing here?"

Smiling sheepishly, Sasha said: "Well, I planned to not bother you anymore, but I just… I couldn't help it; I wanna hear more!" Nikolo swore she was making a puppy face right now. He hadn't known vampires could do that "Please?"

Nikolo stared. Farewell, was what she'd said. Back then it should've made him glad, but it didn't. Now she was back again and it should've annoyed the hell out of him, but… it didn't. He was glad she was here.

"Sure" so what if he hang around with her? Everyone had a weirdo or two as a friend; his weirdo just happened to be a vampire.

"Yay!"

They just had to make sure they didn't get caught.

**A.N: In case you ever wondered what kind of stuff I write while I'm badly anemic… well, there's your answer. This kind of stuff.**

**Anyway, as some have probably noticed, I've been more or less updating this with a new one shot every Sunday. However, right now I'm out of one shots, so it's highly likely that there won't be one next week and that the updates will stop being regular for the time being. I might get some inspiration from the next chapter, but not promising anything. Still, I'll return with regular updates at some point and might publish a thing or two every now and then irregularly, maybe on other days than Sundays. Keep your eyes open!**


	25. Chapter 25

**A.N: Yeah, I know I said there likely wouldn't be an update this Sunday, **_**but **_**I also said there might be if I get inspiration from the new chapter. And I did, so here we are! Say good morning to our sleeping beauty!**

**WARNING: Spoilers up to chapter 125!**

**The Things She Heard**

It was really quiet. It usually was. Usually, she couldn't hear anything. Sometimes there were some soldiers talking but other than that, nothing.

"It's really true" was that Marlowe's voice? "Annie… she really _is _the female titan!"

"I thought they might've been pulling a joke on us" this was Hitch, definitely "I was her roommate; how did I not notice!?"

"Pretty sure she didn't hang around your room in her titan form" Boris, Annie was sure "This is messed up."

No shit.

There were moments Annie wanted to comment, but was unable to. She couldn't even see them. As Marlowe mentioned being about to join the scouts, she couldn't help but think what a fool he was being. She wanted to talk him out of it but, naturally, she was unable to.

That was the last time she heard Marlowe's voice.

The news of his death came from Hitch, who came in screaming an angry fit, asking her _why_. Why did Marlowe have to die? Why did she have to kill all those people in Stohess? What did she feel as she did?

…

What indeed.

Annie barely ever heard Boris' voice. He was there sometimes, but never for long, and always just to look for another soldier who was there with her. Hitch, on the other hand, started to show up often.

As did Armin.

"Have you found out anything useful?" Hitch asks.

"No, I only see bits and pieces" Armin said "The fragments of his memories are unclear."

_Fragments of his memories._

Annie didn't have to wonder for long what that meant; she realized Armin had inherited a titan. Armin. Why him, of all people possible? Surely there could've been others… and which titan was it?

It took her months to learn it had been the Colossal titan. Bertolt was dead, yet she couldn't even mourn for her comrade, unable to even shed a single tear.

She couldn't cry even when she found out Zeke was a traitor, having sent an army of his own to Paradis. Not that she would've cried about it even if she could. Screamed in frustration, then? More likely, but maybe not that either. After all, who was she to judge? The things she had done, she hadn't done them for Marley. Nor humanity. It was for her and her father alone, personal reasons. She didn't know what Zeke was thinking, but he must've had reasons of his own.

There was no point in wondering who was right and who wrong.

The history would be written by the winners, anyway.

Connie came by once, asking about the possibility of feeding her to his mother. Annie had already gathered bits and pieces about an attack by Marley from the conversations around her, but it was only now that she learned that the place that took most of the damage was Connie's home.

How did she feel about that? She didn't know. She knew Connie, but had no ties to his family. She didn't know them, she didn't care, so by logic, it shouldn't matter. It shouldn't, yet she felt something.

Jean was sometimes there too, although rarely, always tagging along with Armin if he was. He rarely spoke and when he did, he was level headed, logical. He'd changed so much it took Annie a while to realize it was him the first time she heard him talking. Gone was the arrogant boy, and in his place, a man toughened up by war. She wasn't sure if she should consider it a good thing or not.

Sasha stopped by sometimes, too. The first time, Annie was sure, had been an accident with the girl actually looking for food. She wasn't surprised in the slightest. One time, she'd heard her and Armin talk about seafood. Apparently, some war prisoner had cooked for them. When Sasha talked about the deliciousness of the lobster, Annie found herself wishing she had been sitting at the table together with the rest of them. She had always wanted to try out lobster.

That was all there was to it, really.

Mikasa came a few times as well, always with Armin. She didn't say much, but it would've been weirder if she did, anyway. And always to Armin and not her.

Armin on the other hand, came by often. So much so that Annie felt like he put in extra effort to make time to come over. He talked a lot, but he was gloomy. It was mostly him being worried about the future, or Eren.

Speaking of Eren, he never showed up, not even once. Annie supposed the heads of the military didn't want to risk letting her near the founding titan.

At least, she hoped it was the case.

The one who came by the most, however, was Hitch. At first, it seemed like she came by to let out some steam. She was always complaining, about work and other things, but mostly about men. Mostly ones she dated, but also about the scouts she knew, especially Jean. She seemed to be in good terms with Armin, though.

She also read news papers to her, commenting on both important and unimportant details. That was something Annie was actually grateful for; she was somewhat able to keep up with what was happening.

Though had Hitch not been there next to always, she'd probably gone crazy.

Not that Annie would ever admit that.

"Sasha died" that was the first thing Annie hears Armin say after months of not visiting, after having told her he was going to Marley. Not what results they'd gotten, not what he'd seen, just… that. And even as Armin starts speaking in more detail, for the first time since she got stuck in the crystal, Annie has trouble focusing on what is being said.

One more person was dead and she was _still _stuck here.

"_I need to get out" _she has thought so many times over these four years, yet never so strongly as now. As Armin goes on with his story, she learns of the attack on Liberio, and her desire to get out only grows as she can now only wonder if her father survived in the chaos.

But of course, she can't get out.

All she can do is keep listening to Armin, unable to answer when he tells her to do so.

Sometimes Armin and Hitch argued, though it was more like Hitch made jokes that Armin took too seriously and panicked. It was amusing at first, but Hitch should've really left him alone by now.

One day, she finally hears Eren's voice, louder and clearer than anyone else's.

And then, all of sudden, she's out.


	26. Chapter 26

**WARNING: Spoilers up to chapter 125!**

**Girl Talk**

"I don't understand why you had three dates with that guy if he was so boring" Annie said "Because of money?"

"…" Hitch didn't answer, just kept staring straight ahead.

"I could understand that, actually. Money makes life easier" the blond says "Who wouldn't want an easy life!"

"…"

"But what about that guy from the Garrison? The freakishly tall one, what was his deal?" Annie asks again "Did you think that another soldier wouldn't have a problem with your rather dangerous job?"

"…"

"Not that it's always that easy; didn't that _other _Garrison soldier dump you because you're in the MPs and he couldn't get in?" Annie brushed her hair behind her ear "Petty."

"Why are you bringing these up?" Hitch finally asks as a blush covers her face. With a shrug, Annie says: "_You're _the one who told me all this."

"I didn't know you could hear me!"

"So, you were babbling on and on about boys in the basement of your workplace, assuming no one could hear you?" Annie asks, raising an eyebrow "Well, I suppose everyone needs a hobby."

Hitch groaned, urging the horse they were riding to go faster. The sooner she got rid of Annie, the better.

"What happened with that banker again?" Annie asked, but Hitch did her best to ignore her "Oh yeah, that asshole actually had a wife, with a child on the way no less. Think they're still together?"

"Don't know, don't care" Hitch spat, knowing that she shouldn't have answered but, in a way, it was tempting. Four years ago, while they were still roommates, Hitch had been continuously trying to get Annie to talk about these things with her. After all these years, she finally knew for sure that it had been a mistake "You were never this chatty before."

"I've kept my mouth shut for four years; I have some catching up to do" Annie replied "And you're the one who chose the topic."

Hitch just rolled her eyes.

"How about Boris?"

"What about him- ah" Hitch understood, wrinkling her nose "No."

"What's wrong with him?"

"If you can't figure that out yourself, then _you _can date him"

"Fair enough" Annie said "You seem really close with Armin these days."

"It's not like that" Hitch denied "We keep spending time together because it's my job to watch over you and he keeps coming to see _you_."

"Are you sure about that?" Annie asks "Maybe _I'm _an excuse and he actually wants to spend time with _you_."

Hitch is looking ahead, but a slight blush is forming on her face. Annie can probably see it too.

"I highly doubt it" she denies again "And even if he was, I'm not interested."

"Why not?"

"He's way too gloomy" Hitch paused "And brutal; it's like he can completely set aside his human side while on duty."

"That's what it means to be a good soldier" Annie pointed out "In the front lines, at least."

"Was that a jab at the lazy MPs?" Hitch asks, already knowing the answer. Sighing, she says: "I prefer this job; the morally hard decisions tend to fall on the scouts."

"As does the blame, yet the merit often comes to the MPs" Annie said "That hasn't changed, has it?"

"No"

Silence. For a moment, Hitch thought Annie had finally gotten bored of the topic.

"Then what about Jean?" apparently not "He still struggles with right and wrong, does he not?"

"I suppose he does" Hitch said "It's not like there's anything wrong with that guy. I just- "

Hitch froze midsentence, realizing what Annie had almost managed to get her to say.

"You just what?" Annie asked, and Hitch could just _feel_ the smirk in her voice.

"Nothing" she said firmly, trying to ignore the fact that her face was rapidly reddening. Forcing the horse to pick up speed again, she said: "We should hurry."

She couldn't let Annie to coax her in to talking anymore. She wasn't risking her reputation. But…

"_I suppose this is what it'd been like had I gotten her to join me all those years ago."_

Still, she had to fight the urge to just push the shorter blond off of the horse.


	27. Chapter 27

**A.N: I'm back! And so are the weekly updates, plus extra next Friday since it's Valentine's Day.**

**WARNING: Spoilers for chapter 126!**

**Seeing Her Again**

Being in that town, sitting at that table, Armin was gladder than ever that he was still alive. He was glad that Connie had stopped him from sacrificing himself. Why? Because right there, right next to him, sat Annie.

Annie, who he'd seen frequently, but who'd been unable to speak or move the last four years. Annie, who they had not known for sure was even alive.

He'd talked to her a lot when she was trapped in the crystal, but now that she was free, able to hear and answer him, he couldn't get a word out of his mouth. He was so glad that she was okay, yet at the same time, some of the anger from the betrayal still lingered, even if he now understood her reasons a lot better than back then. He wanted to talk, but had no idea where to start. And if he did, would Annie even answer? She'd never been much of a talker.

Connie, on the other hand, was more of a chatterbox than him and Annie put together, so having him here with them right now fortunately destroyed any chances of an awkward silence. Not that he really said anything useful, too busy making fun of Annie's eating habits, but Armin appreciated the tension breaker. That and he was glad Connie found himself a distraction from his dark thoughts.

But he couldn't let Connie continue his pointless chatter forever, and he was sure the guy didn't want to, either. They had work to do, and it'd be good if they could talk Annie in to joining them.

"Annie" he said, turning the blonde's attention to him instead of Connie "Help us save the world."


	28. Chapter 28

**A.N: Valentine's Day special, as promised! Hopefully no one's tired of NikoSasha yet!**

**Chocolate Hearts**

Jean's presence was starting to unnerve Nikolo. Normally, he wouldn't mind having the man in his kitchen, but this time was different. He clearly wanted something, but every time he opened his mouth, all that came out was meaningless small talk. Whatever the man wanted he should just say it already.

With a sigh, Nikolo put the dishes down and turned to face Jean.

"Alright, I think you've dragged this on long enough. What do you want?" he asked, crossing his arms as Jean automatically denied wanting anything "Bullshit. Now out with it or stop bothering me."

Jean regretted coming over in the first place, but since he was already here, he might just as well go through with it.

"I need your help with something"

"I figured as much" Nikolo deadpanned "And that is?"

"Well, you helped Mikasa make chocolate around this time last year, right?" Jean said "So I was just wondering… well, if you'd teach me too?"

Ah, so that's what it was. He should've figured; Valentine's Day was tomorrow after all. But who did Jean want to make chocolate for? Mikasa? From what Sasha had said, it seemed the soldier had had a thing for the black-haired woman for years, but to Nikolo, it was obvious she only had eyes for Eren. Surely Jean saw it too, right?

"_It's not Sasha, is it?" _he wondered, but quickly shook his head. Even if it was, it was none of his business.

"No can do?" Jean asked, having noticed the cook shaking his head.

"What? No, no, I'll give you a hand" he said "I was just thinking of something for a moment, is all."

With a smirk, Jean asked: "Something or some_one_?"

With a rare smirk on his face, Nikolo asked back: "And who do you want to make chocolate for?"

Jean looked away with a slight blush.

"Thought so" Nikolo said as they reached an unspoken agreement to not throw jabs at each other.

XXXXX

In Nikolo's opinion, heart shaped chocolates were a little tacky. Not that he told Jean that; he just let the guy do as he pleased. And it turned out to not have been a bad decision; the man was surprisingly artistic. That's something the cook learned as he looked at the perfectly cut chocolates, half of them already decorated by the still focused scout.

"I didn't know you had an artistic streak in you" Nikolo commented, jealously realizing that when it came to decorating, Jean was definitely better than him. Good thing Sasha appreciated taste over how her food looked… _"Whoa no, I'm not going there!"_

"There are lots of things you don't know about me or the rest of us" Jean smirked "Though maybe you would if you actually showed some interest instead of always just focusing on Sasha."

Nikolo blushed, unable to come up with a witty comeback right on the spot like he hoped he would. Damn it.

"…So, who is it that _you _focus on?" he tried to change the subject, making Jean immediately avert his eyes. Nikolo however, would have none of that "Hey, I helped you! The last thing you could do is to tell me what for!"

"That's private" the soldier said, focusing on his work again. Nikolo stared at him, unable to hold the words in: "Just… tell me one thing."

"What?"

"It's not Sasha, is it?"

"No" Jean said with a chuckle "It's not Sasha."

He burst out in laughter when the cook sighed in relief. Needless to say, Nikolo didn't appreciate that.

XXXXX

"Nikolo, are you here?" Sasha called out as she entered the kitchen, only to be met with silence. Seems like the cook wasn't present… but he might have left something tasty lying around.

Sasha grinned, ready to look for some snacks. Preferably something Nikolo wouldn't give her so easily if he was here…

"_He's left something to cool down on the table" _she realized, seeing the cloths that covered something. Had they been sitting there overnight? Or had he just taken them out and covered them so no bugs or anything would get to them? Either way, Sasha was happy to play the role of a bit bigger bug that a cloth wouldn't stop.

Lifting the fabric, she was delighted to find what she recognized as chocolate.

"Yay!" she cheered, taking one of the heart shaped treats, biting it happily. As she munched on the treat, Sasha observed the remaining chocolates. All were heart shaped and beautifully decorated, even more so than the stuff Nikolo usually baked.

"But why would he make them heart shaped?" she wondered as she finished the chocolate, licking her fingers before taking another one. Nikolo had scolded her for the habit plenty of times and she'd mostly stopped by now… when he was present, that is.

"_Heart shaped… is he planning a love confession?" _she wondered, feeling happy and sad about the idea at the same time. If it really was the case, then she'd be glad because he would've clearly found something, or someone in this case, that made him happy even though he was a prisoner. And since the only non-Eldian woman she could think of was Yelena, it made it highly likely that the woman was an Eldian, which would mean that Nikolo's attitude problem towards her kind had gotten a major turnaround. As for the part that made her sad, Sasha knew that if Nikolo confessed to someone, he'd have less time to spend with her, unless he got rejected of course. Not that Sasha hoped that; she didn't want to see him sad, even if it would mean that she could see him as often as she had so far. Even if she had first stuck around for the food and to soften up the pair of Marleyans working in the restaurant (but mostly for the food), she had ended up genuinely liking Nikolo and would want to spend time with him even if he refused to cook anymore.

"_Or could the woman be… me?" _Sasha wondered, blushing at the idea, yet not minding it in the slightest. Still, she shook her head, telling herself to not get carried away. Nikolo clearly saw her as an annoyance; there was no way he had _that _kind of feelings for her _"Probably because I keep snatching his food."_

Of course, knowing that didn't stop her from snatching a third piece of chocolate. And when she was halfway done with it, the door opened. Just her luck.

"Sasha?" Nikolo was shocked to see her, but since this was a usual occurrence, the shock was gone in a flash, replaced by irritation "Those aren't for you!"

Yeah, she'd figured as much. And she wanted to know who they were actually for.

"Then who _are_ they for?" she asked, expecting Nikolo to turn in to a stuttering mess, but instead he said: "I don't know and it's not any of my business anyway."

Walking over, he took the chocolates away from the confused woman.

"I helped Jean make these, but he wouldn't tell me who they were for" Nikolo admitted. He wasn't sure if it was okay to tell on the guy like this, but it's not like he had told Nikolo to keep it a secret, either.

"Oh!" Sasha let out, feeling both happy and guilty of her happiness at the same time as she realized that the chocolates weren't Nikolo's "So these are for Armin? Then I'm sure he won't mind if I take a few!"

Nikolo stared at her blankly.

"…Armin? You think they're for _Armin?_"

"Definitely; he's so smitten!" Sasha said with a snigger. Eyebrows raising in disbelief, Nikolo said: "I thought he had a thing for Mikasa?"

"Sure, when we were kids" Sasha said with a snort "He still cares for her a lot, but his heart belongs to Armin."

"…Right" Sasha liked to pull pranks, so Nikolo wasn't sure if he believed her… but then again, Armin and Jean _were _pretty close as far as he could tell, so maybe it was true after all?

"So~" Nikolo didn't like that tone "Where's _my _chocolate?"

Nikolo scoffed.

"What makes you think I've made you any, you greedy little pig?"

"…" Sasha pouted, and Nikolo couldn't keep himself from thinking that it was cute.

"…Chocolate takes a while to set, so I'll bake chocolate cookies for you instead, okay?"

"Okay!" Sasha cheered, hugging Nikolo "Thanks!"

Blushing hard, Nikolo yelled: "Careful or I might drop the chocolates!"

Sasha laughed, but let go of the cook anyway. She eyed the remaining chocolates, wondering if she'd still be able to snatch one.

As if reading her mind, Nikolo said: "Steal any more of these and you won't be getting any cookies."

Sasha pouted, but took his warning seriously. She'd learned it the hard way that he meant what he said. She didn't want to take the risk of missing on any of his cooking. Sitting down in a chair at the corner of the room, she knew better than to get in to Nikolo's way, Sasha watched the Marleyan get to work with a small smile on her face. It didn't take long for them to start chatting, mostly Sasha though as Nikolo worked, but she didn't mind. She was more talkative by nature, and she knew he was listening. He always did.

Maybe he would make chocolate specifically for her one day instead of just cookies.


	29. Chapter 29

**A.N: A while ago tumblr had an Armin Week, so you'll be getting some Armin stuff now.**

**Day 1: Midnight**

Little Armin woke up to loud banging. For a moment, he feared there was a titan somewhere. He had had nightmares about them lately. However, then he reminded himself that it was impossible; the walls were protecting humanity. Someone must just be at the door.

"_Mom and dad are out" _he remembered _"I should get the door."_

His grandfather was home and watching over him of course, but he'd been working all day and must've been really tired. If possible, Armin didn't want him to wake up in the middle of the night.

But of course, the loud banging had already woken the old man up. In truth, Armin was slightly relieved, for this was scary. Why would someone be at their door in the middle of the night?

"Grandpa, what's happening?"

"We'll see" the old man replied, patting Armin reassuringly on the head "But first we need to open the door."

The man went to go do just that, and Armin was right behind him. After the door opened, the soldiers behind it stormed in without permission or changing any pleasantries.

"What is the meaning of this?" Armin's grandfather asked firmly, but didn't raise his voice, knowing it would be dangerous to anger the soldiers. Armin clung to the man's sleeve, frightened.

"Mr. and Mrs. Arlert have been found guilty of the heavy crime of trying to investigate the outside world" the final soldier who came in last said "We are conducting a search to see if there is any forbidden material here."

There was, Armin knew. He knew his grandfather's book about the ocean was illegal… but maybe they wouldn't find it? Armin had taken it without a permission again and hid it at the bottom of his toybox, maybe they wouldn't look there?

"Investigate the outside world? How?" the older Mr. Arlert asked, and Armin found himself curious as well "Where are my son and his wife?"

"They won't be returning" Armin didn't like the sound of that. What did it even mean? Had they gotten to the outside world and were unable to come back? Or were they not allowed to? Going outside was illegal unless you were a scout after all…

"Stay there until we complete the search" the soldier told them. They complied, and once he was a little further away, Armin asked: "Why aren't mom and dad coming home anymore? Did they go to outside world?"

"Later, Armin. Later" his grandfather said with hushed voice. They stood there for quite a while until they heard a soldier call out: "I found something!"

A soldier came over with a book, Armin could tell it was the one about the animals of the outside world that he had sometimes snuck looks at. He knew it was an illegal book. Were him and his grandfather in trouble now?

"Did you know something like this was in the house?" the soldier in charge asked his grandfather.

"No, I did not" it was a lie, Armin knew, but he didn't call his grandfather out on it. The soldier stared at the old man for a while longer before leaving it at that. Apparently, he believed him.

When the soldiers finally left, they took with them a handful of books, all that Armin's grandfather denied ever seeing, and some of his parents' notes. The old man headed for the office, Armin right behind him. The place was a mess, the soldiers having looked for evidence of crime and found it.

"Grandpa, are we in trouble?" Armin asked, but to his surprise, the man shook his head.

"No" he said "But your parents won't be coming home from the outside world."

That's what the soldiers had said, and Armin felt conflicted. He was glad that his parents had gotten to the outside world, the place they had always wanted to go to and talked about in hushed whispers, but he wished they'd come back at some point to take him along.

"_But I can follow after them when I grow" _Armin told himself. Maybe his grandfather could come too.

"Grandpa?" he asked as he suddenly noticed the man crying "Are you sad?"

"Yes, a little" the man admitted. Armin frowned, but then got an idea. The book about ocean, icy plains and burning sand hadn't been in the soldier's pile.

It was still in his toy box.

"Wait just a moment, grandpa!" he said cheerfully, running to his room and soon returning with the book. With a smile, he presented it to the man "We still have this!"

The old man looked at the book in surprise.

"How did they miss this?" he asked, but the gears were already turning in his head "Armin, did you take this without permission?"

Armin looked down, realizing that he may be in trouble now.

"…Yes" he confessed "I'm sorry."

With a sad smile, his grandfather patted his head.

"Don't be" he said "But Armin, this is an illegal book. No one must know we have it. Understand?"

"Yes" he said. He knew the soldiers would get mad if they knew.

"Good" the old man yawned "Now go put this back to where you keep it and go back to sleep. We'll clean this up tomorrow."

"Okay!" Armin said, happily returning to his room.

That night, he dreamed of a reunion with his parents in the outside world.

**A.N: Of course, they're actually dead, but Armin didn't understand that until later.**


	30. Chapter 30

**Day 2: Jellyfish**

"Whoah…" Armin muttered as he stared at the little creature washed up on the shore… it _was _a living being, right? He'd never seen anything like it "I wonder what this is?"

Onyankopon would probably know. Or Yelena, but he couldn't see either of them right now. They were nearby somewhere, but Armin was afraid that the little creature would go away before he had the chance to ask.

"_Looks like I'll have to ask one of the prisoners… surely I'll get an answer if I ask nicely, right?" _honestly, he couldn't count on it, but he wanted to try. The guy who was good at cooking seafood would probably know.

Mind made up; Armin wondered how to move the little thing. It looked fragile, and he didn't want to harm it. Would it be safe if he scooped it up with his hands? If he was really careful?

"Well, here goes" he chose to try, but yelped not long after scooping it up "Ow!"

It was burning, it was burning his hands! It wasn't all that intense burning, he certainly knew what _that _felt like, but it came so out of nowhere that it surprised him.

"Armin! You okay?" Jean had heard him it seems, for the man ran over.

"Yeah, I'm fine" he said with a frown, looking at his hands "But this thing here burns; I think it's poisonous."

Jean looked at the little creature, quirking an eyebrow "What _is _that?"

"I don't know" Armin admitted "But the Marleyans probably do, so I'm going to ask."

Eyeing the creature, Jean asks: "Are you sure you want to carry that?"

"The burning's not that bad and since it's me, it'll heal" the blond said "Don't worry."

They went over to the cooking war prisoner, Nikolo, Armin heard Sasha call him, and the cranky guy took one look at what he had to show before turning his attention back to his cooking.

"That's a jellyfish" Nikolo told "I'm no expert in those, but since you're holding it like that, that one's probably not poisonous."

"Actually, it burns a little" Armin confessed, making Nikolo look at him in surprise "Then why are you still holding the thing? Get rid of it!"

"It doesn't hurt that badly" Armin said, showing his find to Sasha who was leaning closer "_Jelly_fish, you say? Is it tasty?"

Nikolo scoffed.

"I wouldn't eat that, but if you want to poison yourself then by all means do so" he told the girl, who pouted "Meanie! I was just asking!"

Nikolo huffed, returning his attention to his cooking. Armin chuckled good-naturedly, noting that the hostile POW wasn't quite as hostile as he had expected. He felt like they were making progress.

"Maybe you really should put that away before someone else gets hurt" Jean says, pointing at the jellyfish.

"Right" Armin says, walking back to the shoreline. Putting the jellyfish down, he watches as a wave washes it away. The world had all kinds of pretty little things to show them, it seemed.

Now, what else could he find?

**A.N: I'm actually not sure if a titan's healing powers would cover poisonings, but let's just say that it does. :D**


	31. Chapter 31

**Day 3: Kiss**

"You know, there are lots of fairy tales where kisses have magic, healing powers" Reiner said with a laugh as he and Armin helped sick Eren to bed "Should I go tell that to Mikasa?"

"What does Mikasa have to do with any- "Eren seemed to catch up "Don't give her any weird ideas!"

Reiner laughed.

"I don't know of any fairytales like that" Armin confessed; his curiosity awakened. He read a lot, fiction included, but this was a new idea to him. Reined looked at him oddly, asking: "You don't know the story of the Sleeping Beauty?"

Armin shook his head. The name didn't sound familiar.

"Snow White?"

Again, he shook his head.

"Princess and the Frog?"

Nope.

"Wow" Reiner said "I thought everyone knew those!"

"Reiner…" Bertolt said from the top bunk. To Armin it sounded like he was trying to give some kind of warning, which was odd. Maybe he feared that Armin would feel insulted? Not that it was necessary; Armin was simply curious.

"How do those stories go?" he asked, hoping that Reiner would be able to tell at least some kind of outline for the stories.

"Well…"

XXXXX

Years later, Armin still remembered how the stories Reined had told had went. Now he also understood why he'd never heard of them even though Reiner had thought of them so famous; they were Marleyan stories. Old Marleyan stories, but ones that hadn't made it to inside the walls.

"_Kisses hold magic powers, huh…" _he thought, staring at the sleeping beauty he knew. Or was she more like Snow White? The crystal was kind of like the glass casket…

"_They are just stories" _Armin reminded himself, but took a step closer anyway _"Just stories…"_

Regardless, he pressed his lips on the crystal.

…

"_Well, I tried" _he thought with a slight blush, glad that no one saw.


	32. Chapter 32

**A.N: No Armin -stuff this week since I got inspired by the new chapter!**

**WARNING: Slight spoilers for chapter 127.**

**Good Girl**

"_She'd help you like she helped me"_

"_She saved me from this stupid, worthless war"_

"_Sasha was such a good girl"_

The words haunting her mind at night, Gabi couldn't sleep. Not long before, the face of the sniper on the roof had haunted her in her nightmares, holding on to a rifle as she mercilessly killed the gate guards. But the last few nights, her mind had been haunted by a surprised face, instantly coated in pain, the face of the very same woman as she bled to death in the airship.

The woman everyone seemed to respect and admire.

The woman _she_ had killed.

She'd felt proud, so proud of her kill at first, even long after she'd fired the shot, but her believes had started to shatter in the restaurant as she had learned just who she'd killed.

Sasha Blouse, the woman who'd saved a child that gave her and Falco a hand. The only child of the couple who'd helped them so much. A woman who had something so good about her that even an Eldian hating Marleyan soldier had fallen in love with her.

But thanks to Gabi, that person was no more.

She knew that they were at war, and that she had just killed an enemy soldier. Sasha had killed other soldiers too, and had Gabi been an adult, the woman would've probably used her chance that day in Liberio and shot her. It hadn't been personal; both of them had just been doing their jobs.

…

That was a lie, Gabi knew. It was indeed the case for Sasha as far as she knew, but after the deaths of her friends and the destruction of her home, it had _become_ personal for Gabi. She'd gone forward to take Eren Yeager's life, but when she got a chance to shoot enemy soldiers, she specifically chose Sasha, the one who had directly killed people dear to her.

"_I wonder… had I not killed her, what would be different?" _she glanced to the direction Falco was sleeping in _"If she hadn't died, surely Mr. Nikolo wouldn't have attacked us. Falco wouldn't have gotten the wine in his bloodstream, so…"_

Gabi gritted her teeth, knowing full well that what happened to Falco was her fault.

"Gabi? Are you okay?" she looked over her shoulder, seeing Reiner's beaten, still in the middle of healing, face "You should be asleep; we'll have a long day tomorrow."

"…I know" she said. Silently, Reiner moved to sit down next to her.

"Reiner, did you know Sasha Blouse?"

He stiffened, she noticed. Maybe it hadn't been a good idea to ask.

"…Yeah, I did" he finally admitted after some silence.

"What kind of person was she?" Gabi couldn't help but ask despite knowing that Reiner probably didn't want to talk about anything that reminded him of his time here. She just… as bad as it all made her feel, she had to hear more.

Reiner was silent for a while, but eventually said: "I told the whole family about my time on this island at the dinner table, didn't I?"

Gabi blinked.

"…Yes?"

"Do you remember what I said first?"

Gabi had to think of it for a moment, but eventually she remembered the weird story.

"Someone ate a potato in the enlisting ceremony… and got yelled at?"

"Exactly" Reiner said with a snort "From then on, she was known as the Potato girl."

Gabi stared at Reiner blankly, not understanding what he was getting at, but he didn't explain any further. Why would-

"Ah!" she suddenly realized "_That _was Sasha Blouse!?"

"Yeah" Reiner confirmed "She was an airhead, always getting in trouble with Connie. She had great instincts though and was a capable soldier."

"Were you… friends?" Gabi was afraid of the answer, not sure if yes or no would be worse.

"I always pretended to be" Reiner said. He seemed conflicted, but finally said: "Yet with time, it became genuine. With Sasha and many more."

"_So that's what he's been holding back" _Gabi realized, remembering how off Reiner had seemed at the dinner that day. He must've been weighted down by the guilt he was carrying, just like she was now.

"_But he's trying hard to keep more people from getting hurt" _Gabi reminded herself _"And I must do so too."_

As Gabi finally went to bed again, her determination was back. She might have done bad things that couldn't be undone, but she had the chance to do something good, something that would keep even more people from suffering.

And she'd do all she could.


	33. Chapter 33

**WARNING: Spoilers for chapter 127!**

**March Forward, Lost Soldiers**

Onyankopon stood at the edge of the forest, having no idea what to do or feel. He'd dedicated himself to Zeke's mission for years, yet it had turned out to not be what he thought it was at all. On top of it, Yelena, who had gotten him involved in the first place, was nothing she had said she was. Everything he'd been working for had been a lie.

"_Just what am I supposed to do now?" _of course, he knew that the thing to be done was to save the world from the rumbling, but there were two problems with it: one, it was way easier said than done and two, he had no idea how in the world could _he _help with it. Magath had thought Yelena might have an idea of what route Eren would take. That was smart, and it made Onyankopon regret that it hadn't been him who directly taught Eren about the world. Had it been him, he could be of use now.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping?" Onyankopon almost jumped at the voice. Whirling around in alarm, he relaxed as he realized it was just Jean who was emerging from the forest.

"I needed to think about things" he admitted with a sigh. Remembering how upset Jean had been when he'd stormed off, he asked: "Are you okay?"

"Yeah" Jean said with a sigh "As okay as one can be in this situation, anyway."

"Will you be able to…" Onyankopon didn't finish, for he wasn't sure what exactly would they have to do. Fight? Talk?

"I'll do what I can" the young man said "To the bitter end if I have to."

"…"

"Sorry" Jean let out a laugh "I suppose that was a bit too dark."

"Not at all" Onyankopon lied "…Can I ask you something?"

"Sure"

"Why didn't you join Floch and the others? You could've- "

"You already asked that" Jean said, looking away "I know it would've been the easiest way. I seriously thought about it. But I just… I couldn't."

Jean let out a bitter laugh.

"Trying to do the right thing always puts me in harm's way."

Onyankopon didn't know what to say to that.

"All I can do is to advance and hope that I've made the right choice" the young soldier continued "It sucks."

"Do you regret having become a soldier?"

"All the time" Jean answered without missing a beat. He looked at his hand, like he was holding something, not that Onyankopon could see what it was, before he said: "But if I'd quit now, I'd regret that for the rest of my life; it'd never go away."

He looked up.

"But if we can solve this properly, my regret for becoming a soldier _will_."

He said it with such conviction and certainty that questioning him was not an option. This soldier, younger than him by almost ten years, had chosen the path he'd follow despite not knowing what waited alongside it. And Onyankopon would be damned if he chickened out in front of him, in front of _all_ these youngsters.

"Right" he said.

They'd make this work.

They _had_ to.


	34. Chapter 34

**A.N: And now we return to the stuff from the Armin Week again!**

**Day 4: Dilemma**

"Hmm…." Armin muttered, staring at the items at the shop window. Next to him, Eren sighed in frustration.

"C'mon Armin, just choose already" he pushed "Or better yet, don't buy _anything_. Who says you have to get the Horse face a birthday present anyway?"

"No one says I have to get him one" Armin said, not taking his eyes off of the two items he had trouble choosing from "I just want to."

"And I want to punch him" Eren muttered under his breath, causing Armin to roll his eyes. You'd think that after all they'd been through together, the duo could finally act civil with each other but no, they could not.

He supposed the walls would be walking before _that _happened.

"Just get the sketching pad and we can go!" Eren snapped, and this time Armin looked at him in surprise "The sketching pad? You think Jean would prefer that over the pencil set?"

"Don't know, don't care" Eren said with a shrug "But it's cheaper."

"I can't choose his present based on that!" Armin hissed "You're of no help at all… if I could afford it, I'd just get him both…"

"Seriously, Armin?" Eren asked, but got no answer. With a sigh, the brunet marched inside the store, leaving behind the confused blond. Armin had no chance to follow him inside as he already saw Eren scoop up the sketch pad from the window, heading for the cashier.

"_I can't believe he's just making the choice for me" _Armin thought _"I really shouldn't let him push me around like this."_

Despite knowing that, he did nothing to stop his friend.

As Eren came back, Armin made sure that the fact that he wasn't pleased showed on his face.

"What?" Eren asked, raising an eyebrow "Now come on, go get that pencil set so we can go."

"Huh?" Armin asked, but then the gears started turning in his head as Eren refused to meet his gaze _"Jeez, Eren."_

As Armin went to the store, he couldn't help but wonder just under what kind of excuse would Eren give Jean his present.


	35. Chapter 35

**Day 5: Armin as the Founding Titan**

"Armin, have you seen Eren?" Armin looked up, seeing his friend's father next to him. Lost in thought, Armin hadn't heard the man coming.

"He was here when I fell asleep. Mikasa went to look for him" the blond said "I'm sure he didn't go far."

"I see. And Carla?" Armin looked down, muttering: "I'm sorry, but she didn't make it."

"Carla…" Grisha muttered in grief, his eyes wide. Then he shook his head, saying: "There's something I must give to Eren."

"I'm sure he'll be back soon" Armin reassured, not sure what else to say. They fell in silence and while Armin was glad to have an adult he knew around, he felt like something was off with Grisha _"Well of course, he just heard his wife died."_

But something had seemed off even before Armin told him that. Was it just this horrible situation that made something feel wrong?

Armin glanced at Dr. Yeager, and the man seemed to be deep in thought. He seemed restless, too.

"Come with me" he suddenly told Armin.

"Huh?" the blond asked "Shouldn't we be waiting for Eren?"

"I'm running out of time" the man said, getting up "You can give what I give to you to Eren when the time is right."

Why? He was sure it wouldn't take long for Eren to come back… but Dr. Yeager seemed to be in a hurry. He supposed it wouldn't do any harm for him to take whatever it was that Dr. Yeager had and give it to Eren later, whatever it was.

With that in mind, he followed the doctor in to the woods.

XXXXX

Armin sat there on the ground, his body smoking, holding the doctor's glasses, staring at what remained of the doctor's body. He was dead, Armin had killed him. _Eaten _him. The man had told him about his mission, about the power of the titans, about the time limit. At first, Armin had thought the man had gone crazy, but looking at what was left of the doctor and his own steaming body, he knew it all had been true.

Including the fact that Armin had only 13 more years left to live.

"13… years…" Armin muttered, and ended up throwing up. Only 13 years. What could he do during such time? Could he do anything? How? He couldn't go against the world alone, and who would believe him, a child titan?

Just what was Dr. Yeager thinking, giving him this power?

XXXXX

Armin was thirteen years old now and in military training. He had ten years left to live, but he hadn't told that to anyone, not even Eren. Maybe he should, considering he had inherited the boy's father's mission, not to mention had the hold on the key to their family's basement, where more answers and more detailed information could be found. But would Eren even believe him? Also, how on earth was he supposed to tell his best friend that he had killed his father? As far as Eren knew, his father was still alive and out there somewhere. Would it really be right of Armin to take away that hope? Or was it crueler of him to watch Eren wait for the man? He didn't know.

XXXXX

Armin had turned fifteen, and graduation was approaching. So was his death; he had only eight years left. That was all the more reason why he had finally decided to take action, having taken it upon himself to train his titan abilities. Alone in the woods of course, for he had still to tell anyone. He'd been able to keep it a secret from everyone though.

Until this day, that is.

From his looming height of fifteen meters, Armin stared down at his sturdy, blond haired friend staring at him in disbelief.

Reiner. Reiner had seen him.

But the guy didn't know who he was, right? There was no way he would. Even if he was here to specifically look for him, there was no way he could make the connection.

Seeing Reiner still being frozen in shock, Armin knew he had to make a decision on what to do before the guy regained his chances.

One option was to let Reiner run back and then quickly abandon his titan form. No matter who Reiner told about what he saw, it was unlikely anyone would believe him, for the evidence was minimal. Armin had done some damage to the surroundings, but nothing too major. And even if someone suspected something, him getting pulled in to it was extremely unlikely.

Or was it? If Reiner had come here to look for him, he might be able to put two and two together. Did his titan form resemble him outwardly? Armin wasn't sure… what if Reiner would really suspect him? The safest choice would be to silence the man on the spot.

"_No way" _Armin thought. It was undoubtedly the safest thing to do, but that was not who he was. Besides, Reiner was his friend. There was a third option.

There was _always _a third option.

Deciding to go down the riskiest route, Armin emerged from the nape of his titan, calling out to Reiner and revealing his identity.

"…Armin?"

There was no going back now.

XXXXX

"So, you're telling me that the titans were originally humans?"

"That's right" Armin said.

"And the walls are made of titans"

"Right"

"And… and there are other people outside of the walls?" this seemed to shock Reiner the most.

"Yes" Armin said. Reiner didn't sound doubtful, but he couldn't be sure "Reiner, do you believe me?"

"Honestly?" the bigger blond asked "Had you told me something like this yesterday, I would've thought you were crazy. But after what I just saw…"

He didn't finish, not that he needed to. Armin got his point.

"Who else knows? You know, about all this" Reiner asked, and Armin didn't hesitate to tell the truth.

"No one" he admitted "I know I should tell Eren, but I just don't know how. And with his hatred towards titans…"

He saw Reiner grimace; the guy knew exactly what he meant.

"Yeah, no kidding. He might not take it so well" he agreed "But he's your best friend, right? He might punch you at first out of instinct but, since it's you, you'd probably get around to him in the end."

Armin looked at Reiner in surprise, feeling more optimistic about telling Eren than he ever had before "You think so?"

"Yeah, just make sure Mikasa doesn't come and behead you first if she sees you as a titan" the guy chuckled "She might actually be able to pull it off."

Armin laughed, knowing it was true. The joke, if it could be called that, was rather morbid, but he knew Reiner was only trying to cheer him up.

"Just make sure to pick your timing right" Reiner said "Don't tell him after one of his fights with Jean… or after he's gotten his ass kicked by Annie."

Armin winced. Eren held up his own against Annie pretty well these days, but the tiny blonde still tended to have the upper hand.

"I gotta go; Bert's probably already wondering where I am" Reiner said, standing up "I take it you want me to stay quiet about everything?"

"Yes, please" Armin said, wondering if he really would. Reiner was trustworthy, he was sure, but he was also very close with Bertolt. Would he keep the secret from him? _"I'll take the risk."_

"I'll find a way to tell Eren and Mikasa, eventually" Armin told "But until then, I'd prefer if no one else knew."

"Got it" Reiner said "Though next time, make sure you aren't followed."

"Noted"

XXXXX

"Armin? You in here?" Armin had hidden in to the trees after training in his titan form as he heard someone coming, but it turned out to be only Reiner, so he came out of his hiding place.

"Here" he said "Do you need something?"

"Not really, just wanted to check how you were doing" Reiner told, sitting on to a fallen tree trunk "Without anyone overhearing us, of course."

That made sense. Having decided to quit for the day anyway, Armin went over to sit next to Reiner.

"Training coming along well?" Reiner asked, clarifying "_This _training, I mean."

"I think I'm getting the hang of it" Armin admitted. Frowning a little, he confessed: "Though I'm worried about my stamina; I can't be gone for too long, so I haven't exactly been able to test what my limits are in terms of time."

"I could cover for you some time" Reiner offered, but Armin shook his head "No, I don't want to risk you getting in trouble because of me."

"This again?" Reiner snorted "You worry too much. Besides, if you can master this… thing, you'll help everyone with it, right? It'd be more of an investment."

Reiner wasn't wrong, Armin knew, but he was still unsure. After all, he didn't know how to really make use of this power. He didn't know how to protect anyone.

"Since Eren and Mikasa haven't offered the same nor are here with you, I take it you haven't told them yet?" Reiner asked, making Armin nod "I just still can't bring myself to tell Eren the truth… and they'd worry…"

"Of course, they would; they'll be sad to know you have less than ten years left to live."

"Yeah…" Armin trailed off, but then froze as realization struck him.

He had _not _told Reiner about the rule of thirteen years.

He hadn't; he was sure of it. He had left out some smaller details as well, but _that _was the one important thing he had made sure not to share. He didn't want to deal with the pity, nor did he want Reiner to feel bad for him.

So, the question was, how did he know?

"_Reiner was… from somewhere within Wall Maria, right? A small village, the same one Bertolt comes from…" _that's what he'd said, at least, but what if…

"Is something wrong?" Reiner asked, and Armin hurried to shake his head.

"No" he said "We should probably head back."

"Yeah, let's do that" Reiner said. He was the first to get up, turning his back to Armin as casually as usual. Was he being paranoid? Had he actually mentioned the matter to Reiner after all?

"_That has to be it" _Armin told himself _"There's no way…"_

"Is something wrong, Armin?" Reiner asked. He had taken a few steps, but had now stopped, standing with his back to Armin who was still sitting down. But now the taller man was turning around, making a face Armin had yet to see him make, yet which sent shivers down his spine.

He had never seen Reiner look so cold.

"Well?"

"…No" Armin lied, knowing his voice was strained as he forced on a smile "Nothing's wrong."

Despite saying this, he didn't get up nor take his eyes off of Reiner. The taller man didn't move, either.

"_I'm being paranoid" _Armin still told himself _"He's only acting weird because _I'm _acting weird."_

Despite telling himself this, the young man could not bring himself to move.

"Armin" Reiner started "Sometimes you're just too smart for your own good."

It all happened so quickly. Reiner pulled out a knife, and Armin didn't need to wait and see to know that the man was planning to use it on himself, not him. Instinct taking over, Armin brought his hand to his mouth, biting down and transforming. And while he was at it, he saw Reiner transform as well.

Now, in front of him, stood the Armored titan.

Just now, the idea that that would be the case had briefly passed by in his mind, but for it to actually be true…

"_Think of it later" _Armin thought _"For now, run."_

And he did exactly that, managing to slip past Reiner with the power of surprise as he charged at the Armored titan blindly, dashing past him instead of at him at the last moment. That was the only rational solution; he could not win Reiner one on one, human forms or titan forms, of that he was sure. His best option at survival was to attract the attention of the cadets, have them charge at the two of them, hopefully, and then slip away in the chaos without Reiner spotting him. He had no plan yet what to do after that, but he'd think as he went.

Or that was the plan anyway, had there not been a sudden explosion and another titan right in front of him.

A female titan.

Must've been a companion of the Armored titan, but there was no way that was Bertolt. However, the titan's features reminded Armin of someone else.

"_Annie?"_

He had no time to think of this further as a giant fist flew towards him, Armin feeling his head tear off seconds later. He wasn't dying, he realized, it was just his titan form's head that had been blown away. But as his titan sunk to its knees, his human form was now completely exposed and he wouldn't be able to heal fast enough. He could already hear the Armored titan closing in on him.

He was going to get eaten.

Knowing he couldn't get away, Armin fixed his gaze on the weary looking female titan.

"Annie, right?" he asked, and the widening of it's eyes was all the confirmation he needed "Why do you do this? You're also Eldians, right? We're the same."

Could Annie speak in that form, he'd never know. Nor would he ever know if the girl was planning to answer in the first place, for that was when Reiner caught up with him, sinking down his teeth. At first, Armin felt a mind shattering pain, but after that, nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

**A.N: I was actually rather tempted to make a longer version of this where Armin actually doesn't get caught and fights to save Paradis, doing a lot better job than Eren. But since I have so many other projects already, I probably never get anything like that done.**


	36. Chapter 36

**Day 6: Eren, Mikasa and Armin**

"Armin!" Armin looked up with a smile as he heard his best friend, his only friend, but that wasn't the point, calling out to him. He raised his hand up in a wave, but it froze midway as he realized that Eren wasn't alone.

Eren didn't have any other friends either, so if he came to Armin with someone else, it was always either one of his parents or the soldier Hannes, a friend of Eren's father. But not this time. This time, he was accompanied by a girl who looked to be about their age.

Armin didn't like that, not one bit. Other kids were always mean, and this girl looked mean too.

"This is Mikasa" Eren introduced as the two reached him "She'll be staying with my family from now on."

"Huh?" Armin asked in surprise, not understanding why the Yeagers would suddenly take someone in. But it's not like it was his business, anyway. Remembering his manners, Armin extended his hand: "Uuh… I'm Armin."

He had to be polite; it's not like this girl had done anything to him, not yet at least, and if she was Eren's friend, she couldn't be all that bad, could she? He had to give her a chance.

"Hello" the girl simply said, taking his hand, and Armin actually winced at her hard and sturdy grip. Had she done that on purpose or was her hold always that strong?

"What are you up to?" Eren asked, making Armin glance at the book he'd left on the ground "Just reading."

"About the ocean again?" Eren asked, and Armin turned his panicked gaze to the brunet, willing him to shut up. Eren _knew _it was illegal; he shouldn't bring it up in front of other people.

"Eren" he hissed, hoping his friend would get the hint.

"Huh? Ah" Eren seemed to get it "Don't worry about Mikasa; she won't tell anyone. Right, Mikasa?"

"Tell what?" the girl asked, apparently not knowing what the ocean was. Not that Armin held it against her; after all, most people hadn't even heard of it.

"Nothing!" he hurried to say before Eren could get them in to trouble "It's nothing at all!"

Eren was frowning, he saw.

"But Armin- "

"I need to go; grandpa said he wants me home early today!" the boy said, picking up his book and running off before Eren could protest.

He was pathetic, he knew. Normally, Armin took pride in never running away but today, he hadn't been able to help himself. Aside from Eren, he was always a little scared of other kids, and this new girl, Mikasa, was also scary. What if she got them in trouble if she saw the book? Or what if she took the book to throw it around? She wouldn't be the first one to do that.

"_Stop it Armin, now you're just being rude" _he told himself _"She didn't do anything!"_

Maybe he could apologize the next time he saw her. Or at least try to be her friend. Surely, if she tried to bully him, Eren wouldn't take her along anymore, right?

Armin sure hoped that.

XXXXX

"Give it back!" Armin snapped at the bullies that took his book, though he knew it was useless. They never did, regardless of if he asked nicely or gave a firm order. But those were the only things he could do; he wasn't tall or strong enough to just take it back.

"Or you'll do what?" one of them asked, and the other two laughed. They all knew there was nothing Armin could do "Read your little story books out loud?"

"They aren't just stories" Armin told, knowing that he wouldn't be believed anyway "Those things really exist in the outside world!"

"Uhhuh, sure" one of the boys mocked, flapping through the pages "Because _salt water _is so real!"

With a chuckle, he carelessly threw the book over his shoulder. Armin saw it land on the street, fortunately missing a puddle few meters away. He was about to run over to the book, but the boy held him back.

"We're not done here yet, heretic" he pointed out.

"I think you are" Armin and the bullies turned their heads, seeing an angry Eren carrying a grocery bag with Mikasa right behind him.

"You again, Eren?" they laughed "Came to get beat up again?"

"It's you who'll get beat up" Eren said, pushing the groceries to Mikasa's arms. She accepted them, but as Eren was about to charge forward, he wasn't able to since Mikasa had a hold of his arm as well "Mikasa, let go."

"You shouldn't fight, Eren" she simply said.

"Got a new friend, huh Eren?" the boys laughed "Just listen to her and run along."

"No way" Eren said, pulling his arm away by force before lunging at the boys "You're going down!"

Armin wasn't happy about it when he did. Eren was far stronger than him, but three on one was too much for him as well. Plus, these kids were older and bigger. Eren stood no chance against them on his own.

Remembering that Mikasa was there as well, Armin risked a glance at her to see what the girl would do. Would she run in order to not get in to trouble? Would she get help? She was putting the groceries down…

"_Huh?" _Armin stared in shock as the girl calmly walked to the closest bully, flipping him over by grasping his arm. The other two and Eren all stopped what they were doing, looking at Mikasa in shock.

"Eren, your mom will get mad if you get your clothes dirty" she said, grasping the hand of the boy who had a hold on Eren's collar, flipping him over as well. When she turned her attention to the third boy, he was already backing away "We should go home."

"You little bitch!" the first flipped over bully yelled, trying to hit Mikasa, but the girl dodged, punching him in the face instead. Eren laughed.

"Nice hit!" he cheered, also punching the other guy who was now getting up "That'll teach you to mess with us and our friends!"

The three boys started backing off, still glaring at them, mostly Mikasa, and while Armin was glad that they were leaving, he still couldn't say he approved of all the violence. Problems were supposed to be solved by talking, his grandfather had always told him that.

"You okay Armin?" Eren extended his hand for him, wanting to help him up as he had slid to the ground against the wall at one point. Armin, however, was too proud to take his hand and got up on his own "I'm fine" he said, dusting off his clothes. He glanced towards Mikasa, only to notice her gone.

"This is yours, right?" the blond looked to his left, seeing Mikasa holding out his book. It had a little dent in the cover that wasn't there before and it was a bit dusty, but otherwise seemed fine. Breathing out a sigh of relief, he took it from the girl "Yeah. Thanks."

"You're welcome" Mikasa's face was still so blank, had been the whole time. Armin still wasn't sure about her, but she'd given him and Eren a hand, so maybe she was okay?

Armin really hoped she would be. Both him and Eren could really use another friend.


	37. Chapter 37

**WARNING: Slight spoilers for chapter 128**

**Future Ahead of Us**

"We must be the unluckiest generation since the founding of the walls…" Daz muttered as he and Samuel arrived to their post at the dock.

"How so?" His partner asked.

"How so? _How so_!?" Daz asks, visibly upset "First we get attacked by titans on our graduation day, then we need to go right back in after we survive Trost, then we get stabbed in the backs by people we _thought _were our friends but were actually the reason for our misery, then a large part of our age group gets slaughtered as they join the scouts to retake Wall Maria, and as a cherry on top we learn that _the whole world is against us! _Tell me, how the fuck are we _not _unlucky!?"

"Well, maybe we are a little" Samuel admitted "But we're also lucky; we're making history here!"

As Daz didn't look convinced, he continued: "And more importantly, this all is almost over. All that's left is for the rumbling to succeed and we'll be fine."

He grinned.

"I'm still just 19, you know. Aren't you as well?" Samuel said, but to his surprise Daz shook his head.

"I turned 20 last week"

"You should've told me!" Samuel said, clapping him on the shoulder "Congratulations, man!"

"…Thanks"

"But even so, we're both still young. We have pretty much our whole lives still ahead of us!" he cheered "After Eren's finished with the rumbling, the only threat left are the remains of the warrior unit that still lurk around somewhere, but we'll get rid of them eventually. We're the generation that can build up our lives in peace!"

Daz's face lit up at that.

"Right… you're right!" he said "After this day, there'll only be some minor struggles left at best. We have easy, wonderful lives ahead of us!"

"Damn right we do!" Samuel said "We do this one more day of work perfectly, and then all is well."

"Yeah!" Daz said "And then we'll make the best of our lives!"

Less than an hour later, Armin and Connie arrived.

**A.N: Isayama really got me with those two… suddenly, they're back. Few pages later, they're gone again. Meh.**


	38. Chapter 38

**A.N: Still one left from the Armin Week!**

**Day 7: Dreams**

"I can't wait to wipe out all the titans!" Eren said as he sat down on his bed after a hard day of training.

"Yeah, we know" Reiner said, and Armin felt like the guy was trying not to roll his eyes "So, what happens _after _you've wiped them out?"

Eren paused, exchanging glances with Armin. Should they tell Reiner? Armin didn't take him for the kind of guy who'd rat them out for talking about the outside world, but he might very well laugh about what he heard, and that was something Armin wasn't too keen on listening about. Maybe they shouldn't say anything, at least in detail.

"You guys are hiding something, no question about that" Reiner grinned, a dangerous glint in his eyes "Spill it. Now."

"No harm in telling him, right Armin?" Eren was the one to decide "This is Reiner we're talking about."

Well, Armin supposed it'd be okay. Bertolt was there too, sitting quietly next to Reiner, but _he _was definitely not the type to boldly laugh at others. In fact, he might even scold Reiner if he laughed.

"I guess so" the small blond finally said, confessing: "Eren and I want to go and see the world outside the walls."

"So, you guys want to go sightseeing, eh?" Reiner asks "Anything in particular?"

Armin hesitates, and because of that Bertolt manages to cut in: "Should we really be having this conversation? Talking about the outside world is- "

"Live a little, Bert!" Reiner cuts his timid friend off "No one's paying attention to what we're saying, and even if they did and tattled on us, we wouldn't get in _that _big trouble for just talking."

Reiner was right, Armin knew. When he was a child, he often got bullied for speaking of the outside world, but there was never any legal trouble for him, not even when the soldiers heard.

"_Then again, the soldiers were usually drunk" _he reminded himself.

"…I suppose so" Bertolt said, glancing around nervously, but no longer protesting.

"When we were kids, Armin told me about something called the ocean" Eren answered Reiner's earlier question, nudging Armin with his elbow "Right?"

"Ye-yeah" Armin said "I definitely want to see the ocean. According to my book, there are also icy plains, seemingly endless fields of sand- "

"Wouldn't a book like that be illegal?" Reiner suddenly cut him off, his face serious. Armin froze, looking at Reiner with wide eyes. After a few seconds of silence, Reiner chuckled "I'm just messing with you; I won't tell. Go on."

"You know Reiner, sometimes you can be such an ass" Eren said with a laugh, also having fallen for the guy's act for a second.

"Umm… so what is this "ocean" you speak of?" Bertolt asked. Reiner gave him a weird look, Armin noted, and the pointed look the tallest boy gave him back was equally odd and out of place. Sometimes Armin couldn't help but think that these two had something that only they understood between them. He was curious to know if there really was something, but it wasn't really any of his business, so he never asked.

"It's this huge amount of water that most of the world is covered in" Armin told, trying hard not to let his voice rise in excitement, talking about the ocean often doing that to him "_Salt _water!"

"Salt water, you say?" Reiner said "That's… not something I've heard of before."

"Most people haven't" Eren pointed out "I wouldn't know either had Armin not told me about it."

"Then… seeing the ocean is what you guys want to do? After defeating the titans" Bertolt asked "Like a life goal?"

"Yes!" Armin confirmed with a firm nod "Well, not just the ocean, many other things too, but the ocean is what I want to see the most!"

"Sounds interesting. Maybe we should tag along, eh Bert?"

"…"

"What about you guys?" Eren asks them "Anything you two really want?"

"I'll go home, no matter what" Reiner replied "Not that I'm sure what comes after that… but one thing at a time. Right Bert?"

"That's right" Bertolt agreed "That takes priority, and after that- "

Bertolt went silent suddenly, and Armin found himself curious to know what the guy had been about to say. Judging from the looks on their faces, Eren and Reiner were curious as well.

"…And after that?" Reiner pressed when his friend didn't continue.

"N-nothing" Bertolt stammered, blushing. Armin raised an eyebrow at that. Looking at Reiner, he realized that the taller blond noticed too and that he seemed to know something that Armin didn't.

"Maybe you have some dreams in the long run that you want fulfilled?" Reiner suggested, grinning "Maybe those dreams include a certain someone?"

Armin caught on. It was not rare to catch Bertolt stealing glances at Annie; she must be the one Reiner meant.

"_Somehow… I don't feel too happy about that" _he realized with a frown.

"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Bertolt denied, his face red. Reiner and Armin laughed, Armin even more so when he noticed that Eren hadn't caught on. Well, he was dense when it came to these things.

"_Maybe, by the time we see the ocean, we too have some other people by our sides that we want to share the sight with."_


	39. Chapter 39

**A.N: Some people might consider this too idealistic, and I'd say they're right, but I wanted to write something beautiful. Or actually, I would've liked to draw this as a comic without any speech since I feel like everything would've been easier to get across in pictures, but since I can't draw at all, this'll have to do.**

**WARNING: Spoilers up to chapter 129.**

**Together We Stand, Together We Fall**

White.

That was the first thing Keith Shadis saw as he opened his eyes; white as far as eye can see. Just white.

"Ah…"

Well, almost. Turning his head, he saw his companion who'd joined him for his last journey. _Their _last journey.

"This is… death?" Theo Magath asked "Not quite what I was expecting."

"I expected nothing" Shadis says "You wouldn't happen to know what we're supposed to do now, would you?"

"…Head towards the light?" Magath just shrugs at the look Shadis gives him "It's just something that people often think about when it comes to death. I just always thought that when you die, you die."

"Likewise," Shadis admitted "But apparently, that's not the case."

"Should we just head in some direction?" Magath asked, but Shadis didn't answer, too focused on a figure he saw forming in the distance. It came closer, and he realized it was a person "Shadis?"

"Over there" he said without taking his eyes off of whoever was approaching them "Someone's coming."

"Instructor Shadis, sir!" that salute, that voice, that face… "We didn't expect you to arrive this soon!"

"…Blouse?"

"Yes, sir" she said "And I assure you, I don't have a steamed potato with me this time!"

"…What the hell?" Shadis could hear Magath from beside him, but he ignored the man. He had more important matters at hand.

"Blouse!" he yelled, and the girl, no, a young woman already, jumped like it was a drilled in reaction to his voice "Ye-yes, sir?"

In all honesty, Shadis regretted that he hadn't ever done this while he was alive, not to any of his cadets. But now, having this second chance, he decided to take it.

"You became a fine soldier" he told her as he pulled her in to his arms "I'm proud of you."

Magath watched the scene unfold, already understanding the situation. The woman was one of Shadis' old students, someone who'd died before him. He had a chance to tell what he had left untold while still alive.

The general couldn't help but wonder if he'd get such a chance too.

"Captain Magath, sir"

He froze; he knew that voice.

"It's _general _Magath now"

He knew that one as well.

Turning around, he saw the saluting Galliard brothers.

"Porco… Marcell…"

And behind them, the promising, deceased warrior cadets who never fulfilled their fates: Zofia, Udo and Colt. Not only that, but little ways away was another fallen warrior, Bertolt.

"All of you…" he said, and did something none of them probably expected "I'm sorry."

He was bowing, so he couldn't see their expressions. Not that he even knew if they were really real in the first place or just something his mind had created, if he was simply seeing what he wanted to see.

As he looked up, he could see their baffled expressions, clearly not having expected it. That was a way Magath would expect them to react, so he was no closer to finding out if they were real or not.

"…About what, sir?" Marcell was the one to ask.

"About everything" he answered "About what I put you through, both as your commanding officer and as a Marleyan."

Silence. And more silence.

"…Well, shit happens" and Zofia, who was quickly silenced by Udo elbowing her in the ribs.

"You were simply doing your job, cap- general" Marcell hastily corrected "All of us were."

"That's no excuse to- "

"There are no excuses to a lot of things" Bertolt cut him off, and at that moment Magath realized that this was, in some bizarre way, real. He would've never imagined the timid young man to interrupt him "But what's done is done."

"I- "

"Sir" Marcell interrupted his superior officer, which was another thing Magath hadn't been expecting. He watched as the boy saluted, the other warriors and cadets following his example "It was an honor to fight by your side."

After recovering from his shock, Magath saluted back.

"The honor was all mine" too bad he realized it so late. He'd fought alongside so many remarkable comrades without really understanding their worth. Not 'till his final moments. Speaking of those…

He turned his head to look at Shadis, only to see him with a much bigger group of young soldiers now. His former students, the man betted. And he could see a face that he recognized as well.

Ymir, Marcell's killer.

As upset as he was of the boy's way too sudden death, he now realized that the girl was just a victim of the circumstances. Circumstances that Marleyans like him had created. But what did Marcell himself think?

He turned to see the boy's face, but instead of looking at the other group, he was watching Bertolt. They all were.

The tall young man was looking at the other group, and Magath would have to be a fool to not notice the longing in his eyes. Not too long ago he would've had the boy's head for it, but now he understood, at least partly. _They_ were his comrades, too.

"Go" he said to the young warrior "You have something you want to say to them, don't you?"

Bertolt didn't even hesitate. Magath saw how the boy got the other group's attention, all of them looking at Bertolt. The first one to step up was Ymir, followed by the girl they'd first seen. And then, a freckle faced young man pushed right past them, standing directly in front of Bertolt. From the look on the warrior's face, Magath could tell he was someone important.

The two boys stared at each other until finally, the freckled one extended his hand with a smile. Then, Bertolt broke down. Magath did not know why, but he accepted that some things he could never understand. That included whatever bonds Bertolt had with these people, these people who came to him one by one, talking to him. He'd never know for sure, but to him it looked like Bertolt was being forgiven. Lastly, he saw Shadis step up, making what he had learned to be the Paradis military salute. His cadets followed his example.

A motionless moment followed before Bertolt snapped himself in to the very same salute. Again, not long ago Magath would've had his head for it, but that was in the past. Now he was just happy that the young man could get a closure of his own.

As Bertolt returned to them, Magath held Shadis' gaze. There was no signal of any kind but, at the exact same time, both soldiers gave each other the salutes of their own countries, their subordinates following after them.

As much as he regretted not having understood things while still alive, Magath sided with the thought of better late than never.

He'd achieved his peace, even if it was after death.


	40. Chapter 40

**WARNING: Spoilers up to chapter 129.**

**Here and Now**

"Catch"

Annie did so, easily catching the water canteen Connie threw to her. It was fortunate that it was her legs that weren't working yet instead of her arms.

"Thanks" she simply said, fully expecting Connie to walk away to do whatever one would do during an unnervingly slow boat ride that the whole world's future depended on but instead, he sat down next to Annie, leaning against the wall. When he didn't say anything, Annie started wondering if _she _should break the silence. Did he come here waiting for an apology? Explanation? Annie would be lying if she said she didn't owe him both of those, and she couldn't say "now's not the time", either. It's not like they had anything else to do than sit around and wait, after all.

"Why did you save my life back then?" Connie asks before Annie can make up her mind to speak, and she looks at him in surprise "In Trost. Reiner saved my life too not long after, but… his mind was all messed up by that point, you know? He could no longer tell who he was from time to time, so that explains it. But you've kept your sanity, so why would you save me? We were enemies."

Why indeed. She'd gotten in trouble for that, she'd had to-

…Well, no use thinking about that.

"I don't know" she replied honestly "Instinct, I guess."

"Instinct?" Connie asks "Instinct got you to put your life, your mission and whatever the hell you fight for in the line?"

"Yes" Annie said, turning to look at him "Is there a point to this?"

"Maybe not" Connie said with a lazy shrug, surprising her "You don't even know yourself. Guess I'm not the only idiot around here."

Annie snorted.

"Wouldn't go that far" she said "I might not be the smartest, but I'm still on a completely different level than you."

"Lower or higher?" Connie asked. Annie blinked, seeing the answer as something obvious. As Connie snickered, she realized he'd been kidding. Of course, he had.

Connie turned his face away from her, watching the clouds instead. Annie did the same, silently wondering how much the last four years she'd missed had changed the man. Not that she'd ever known him all that well to begin with, but in her memory, he was always so loud, so lively, and now…

"_He's a soldier that this world has molded" _she knew _"For better or worse."_

She honestly had no idea which. On one hand, she knew that the old Connie wouldn't have been able to cut down people the way this one had, and it was kind of sad that he now could. On the other, had he remained as he was, he wouldn't have been able to save her and Reiner back at the harbor. They'd be dead.

"Thanks" she said before she could stop herself… not that there was any reason to do so "For having our backs at the harbor."

"No problem" Connie says "Right now we need you assholes as much as you need us."

Normally, Annie wouldn't take it well to be called that, but she supposed that if anyone had the right to it, it was Connie.

Silence again, but once more it was the scout who broke it: "I used to really, _really _hate you guys; you know."

Annie raised an eyebrow.

"Past tense?"

"Don't get me wrong, I still don't like you" Connie said "But… the intense hate is gone. I can never fully understand why you guys did what you did, but you believed you were doing the right thing, right? I can't- "

"Not really" Annie interrupted, but this time she really should've kept quiet. Well, too late now.

"Wha?"

"I never thought I was doing the right thing" she might just as well tell him "When I first came to the island, I didn't care about right or wrong. I just wanted to get the job done so that I could go back home to my father. When we broke another gate five years later, I knew it was wrong, but did it anyway. Completing the mission was the only way to see my father again."

She should've stopped there, she knew, but she didn't. Looking in to Connie's eyes, she said: "I know it was wrong, but if it'd really be the only way to return to him, I'd do it again."

She could see the emotions swirling in his eyes. She could see him raising his fist, one that she could easily block, perhaps even dodge despite the condition she was in, but chose not to. If he wanted to punch her, then he could, just this once.

She didn't flinch away or close her eyes as the fist came down towards her face, which was why it surprised her so much when it hit the wall right next to her head instead of her face. She was confused; while Connie had never been an ace in close combat, there was no way in hell he could've just missed for any other reason than doing it on purpose. As for why he'd do so, she had no idea.

"Seriously? You didn't even blink?" Connie asks before pulling his fist back, leaning against the wall again with a sigh "You're so fucked up."

She supposed she couldn't deny that.

"Not that I'm sure if I'm in the position to say that" the soldier continues "Just a few days ago I was ready to do something horrible, all for the sake of my mom… or more like my own sake; it's not like she asked for it."

"But you didn't" Annie says "That's the difference between us."

"Is this some weird way of complimenting me?"

"I'm just stating the facts" Annie said dryly "Not that any of it matters; winners write the history, therefore whoever wins this damn thing was the good one."

"…But we're on the same side right now" Connie points out "So if I turn out to be one of the good guys, so will you."

"We're on the same side _for now_" Annie pointed out "If we manage to stop Eren, who knows what happens after."

"…"

"…"

"…Yeah I don't really want to think of complicated stuff right now" Connie finally said "Let's just focus on stopping our suicidal turned homicidal bastard right now."

"Sure" Annie says. She didn't really want to think of the possibility of what came after, either. Just one step at a time and it'll work out…

"_Or we die, but then it's not our problem anymore."_


	41. Chapter 41

**A.N: This one's an AU, so no spoilers!**

**Potatoes**

"Stop pouting Gabi; you always have fun with Reiner, don't you?"

Gabi grumbles at her mother. Yes, she does, she loves her cousin. But she _doesn't _like his girlfriend. _She _was the reason Reiner no longer came to visit as often; _she _was the reason he no longer had time to call her as often. And _that _made her unlikeable.

But if she was lucky, the woman would be out shopping. Or somewhere with her friends. Or even better, had gone off to see her own family. Then Gabi could spend these few days with Reiner _alone, _just like she used to.

Gabi's the one to ring the doorbell, hopeful. But all her hopes crash down as the door swings open, with a familiar brunette standing at the entryway.

"Oh, you're here already!" she says cheerfully. Gabi doesn't know what'd be more annoying, her genuine cheer that's now in place, or a faked one that she's yet to see.

"Are we too early?" her mother asks.

"Oh, not at all! I mean, Reiner's still out getting groceries, but he'll be back soon. I'll watch after little Gabi in the meantime, so you don't need to worry about being late!" Gabi's face formed in to a scowl as soon as she heard Reiner was out. Why did it have to be him who went out when he _knew _she was coming to visit? _"I bet it was all her fault."_

"Thank you" her mother says before turning to her "Be a good girl now, alright Gabi?"

"Always, mom" Gabi replies, and the slightly raised eyebrow she sees from the brunette from the corner of her eye tells her that she doesn't completely agree. And she's partly right, but everything Gabi's done in her presence has always been justified.

Because Reiner's girlfriend is _stupid._

After her mother is out of sight, the woman turns to Gabi.

"Do you need help with the bag?"

Gabi scoffs.

"I can handle it myself" she says, storming in from the door and not looking back. She leaves her bag next to the living room couch, knowing that she can no longer take over Reiner's bed. He used to let her do it before, before that woman intruded in his life.

"Do you want something to eat?"

"No" Gabi flat out refuses, taking out her game console. She's not letting go of it before Reiner comes back. She has nothing to say to that woman.

XXXXX

Sasha sighs as she watches the child sit down on the couch without another word. She knows the girl doesn't like her, but would it kill her to at least _try _to get to know her?

"_No need to fuss; she's just a kid" _Sasha reminds herself _"A kid whose upset about having to share her cousin's affection and attention."_

From what Reiner had told her, she had gathered that Gabi was a clingy kid and that they were _very _close. It was no wonder she saw Sasha as a threat… or perhaps just as an annoyance, but she certainly didn't like her, that's for sure.

"_But I annoy lots of people anyway" _Sasha thought _"Yet they still warm up to me with time. I'll get this kid to do so too, eventually."_

Or at least, she really hoped so.

XXXXX

It takes almost an hour before Gabi hears the front door open, her cousin calling out: "I'm home!"

"Reiner!" she cheers, running over to the man, noting that she got there before Sasha. Ha!

"You're here already?" the man says, ruffling her hair "I thought I'd make it back before you came."

"She was early" Sasha says as she comes over, and Reiner's attention is immediately drawn to her instead as Sasha gives him a welcome home -kiss, making Gabi frown.

"That explains it" he said "I thought we'd get the food done before she came, though."

"It won't take long anymore since you brought the missing ingredients" Sasha said, taking the bag "I got this; you and Gabi can catch up for a while before lunch."

Gabi frowns again; it's not like they need her permission! But she lets it slide, just this once, because she doesn't want to waste even a small part of her time with Reiner on this woman.

XXXXX

Lunchtime, and the mood was awkward. Or at least it was for Sasha; Reiner was obvious and Gabi seemed to be too busy with glaring at Sasha and trying to make sure Reiner didn't pay attention to her. The woman let it slide without a fuss though; she couldn't' start a squabble with a kid. Still, she would've wished that they'd get along.

She's brought out of her thoughts as Reiner's cellphone rings.

"Sorry" he says, digging out his phone "Yes?"

There's a moment of silence, and then Reiner says: "Yes, there are potatoes, right at the kitchen table with me right now in fact."

Sasha pouts; she absolutely _hates _that old joke!

Sure enough, Reiner soon holds his phone out for her to take.

"It's Connie" he says "You probably let the battery die out in your phone again."

"Crap" Sasha says, covering her mouth immediately, glancing at Gabi "Oops…"

"Like she hasn't heard worse" Reiner says as Sasha takes the phone, excusing herself from the table for the moment. If Connie had bothered to call Reiner just to talk to her, it was probably important.

XXXXX

"What was that about?" Gabi asks "The thing about potatoes?"

"That?" Reiner snorts "Just an old inside joke from our school days."

"What kind of joke?" Gabi asks. She had not missed the face Sasha had made; whatever kind of joke it was, the woman didn't like it. And that already made it a somewhat good joke in Gabi's opinion.

"Back in school, everyone called Sasha "Potato Girl"" Reiner explained. Gabi thought it over, but couldn't figure out the reason "Why?"

"She was caught eating one in the entrance ceremony and that kind of caused a scene" Reiner says, laughing at the memory "And the name just stuck."

"Huh…" Gabi mutters, wondering if there's a way that she could use that name.

XXXXX

"What are you making?" Gabi asks, peeking up at the counter as Sasha cooks. The woman is surprised, yet she's glad that Gabi talks to her without prompting for once.

"Meat balls" she answers "The potatoes are already boiling, so once I get these in the oven, it's all good."

"Hmm…" Gabi mutters, then walks away without a word. Sasha sweat drops, but decides to not let this bother her. Baby steps, baby steps were okay.

However, when she later noticed that the pot of potatoes was gone, Sasha had to wonder if they'd even taken those.

"_It's okay, it's just a prank" _she tells herself _"Now where did that mischievous runt go?"_

Sasha doesn't have to look for long before she finds Gabi from the dining area, smashing the potatoes.

"There you are!" she says, smiling. Looks like the girl just wanted to cook, too "You didn't need to take the pot all the way here; you could've just said you wanted smashed potatoes instead."

"I wanted to do this myself" Gabi tells "I love smashing potatoes!"

"Is that so?" Sasha asks with a smile. Maybe they could have smashed potatoes tomorrow too then, just to give Gabi something to do. And maybe she'd actually manage to get to know the kid if they worked together in the kitchen.

"Yeah, they're much better smashed" Gabi tells "Potatoes should always be smashed. _Always_."

Sasha sweat drops. Even _she _didn't have that strong opinions on how food should be cooked.

"Hm?" Sasha takes note that Gabi is looking at her from the corner of her eye. Weird… and her face was weird, too. It was like Reiner's when he made a bit more complicated joke that he was just expecting her to get and-

Sasha froze.

"_He better not has said anything" _she thought as she looked straight at Gabi, raising an eyebrow. Gabi looks right back, and the look on her face is all telling.

"…"

"…" Gabi grins in a way that some might consider cute and innocent, but now Sasha knows better.

"_Gosh, this kid is dark" _she thinks with a shake of her head. Might be best for her to get out of the girl's hair until dinner was ready _"Or else _I _might be the next one to get smashed."_

**A.N: I ain't on the Anti Gabi -wagon, but it's fun to write her being a brat. :D**


	42. Chapter 42

**A.N: I thought I'd make a short piece of what those on the other side of the ocean see.**

**WARNING: Spoilers up to chapter 130.**

**It's the End of The World**

The rumbling is coming, they said. At first, everyone thought it was a joke. So, what if it was said by their superior officers with a complete straight face during the times of war? Surely, the rumbling, the horrible threat that everyone was told about since they were children, couldn't _actually _happen, not in their lifetimes at least. It was a real possibility, yes, but the chances of getting caught up in it were nonexistent; in their training days as soldiers, they'd all been sure of it.

And yet, now so many soldiers from all over the world watched as an army of colossal titans approached the coast of Marley. It was here, the rumbling, along with the Attack Titan. There was nothing they could do, nothing _anyone _could do.

Some had lost it when realizing this was real, leaving their posts regardless of consequences, some had just frozen, others accepted their fates, perhaps cursing the fact that they had to be there instead of being able to spend their final moments with their families. Some were ready to fight to the bitter end despite knowing how useless it was. Regardless of what anyone would do, there was no longer stopping it unless the devil himself wished to.

And everyone who could see the advancing terror could tell that the Devil did not wish to stop.

Not before everything was gone.


	43. Chapter 43

**A.N: Just a little something I thought of after reading the new chapter…**

**WARNING: Big spoilers for chapter 132!**

**Dedicate Your Heart**

"Hey, Shitty Glasses" Hanji was coming towards him, and that's all Levi managed to say.

_Don't go._

"You know Levi" she says as she reaches him "It feels like my time has come."

_Don't go._

She's sweating, and that face she makes… she's terrified, Levi can tell.

_Don't go._

"I want to act as cool as possible" cool, her? He doubted that'd ever happen "So let me go out like this."

_Don't go._

He couldn't let her go; he couldn't lose her too. Someone else could go in her place, someone else could hold off the rumbling in her place. _He _would do it if he wasn't so goddamn crippled! He hated that monkey more than ever now.

_Don't go._

But if she didn't go, who would? If they gave an order, any of his subordinates would certainly go. But would that be okay? Sending one of their brats to a certain death while they escaped with their tails between their legs?

_Don't go!_

…They couldn't do that, he knew. As much as he didn't want to lose Hanji, he didn't want to lose any of their brats, either. It was an impossible choice… but Hanji was the commander.

_Dedicate your heart._

He puts his fist over her heart, knowing full well what parting words she deserves.

"Dedicate your heart."

She's shocked, he can tell. She forces on a smile. She laughs.

"I've never heard you say that before" she tells him as she prepares for takeoff. He doesn't look back as he hears her leave. Maybe he should've seen her off, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He didn't want to risk losing control of his emotions.

He only turned to look when he reached the others, having gotten his emotions under control for sure.

She was doing well; the titans were falling. Of course, they were; she was a veteran, the commander. She couldn't be more reliable than this.

…

They had to move.

The others ushered him on to the flying boat. He boarded first, knowing that he wouldn't be of any help in getting it to move in the condition he was in. It was frustrating to be so useless, especially when his oldest still living friend was dying out there, but such was life. That's how it always went, and all he could do was sit back and watch, this time literally.

They made it. Hanji had bought them enough time.

"Later, Hanji" he said, closing his eyes "Watch us from there."


End file.
